Old Faces and Secrets Revealed
by Shannon K
Summary: Takes place in season 8 and is a SG1/Highlander xover; Daniel gets a run in with an irritating person from the past and has to deal with some nosy NID folks who don't believe him when he says he doesn't remember his time with the Ancients. This story fits within my Immortal Spacemonkey universe. Rated T for bad language and violence.
1. Chapter 1

Old Faces and Secrets Revealed: An Immortal Spacemonkey Story

Disclaimer: As much as I might wish, I do not own Stargate: SG1, Highlander: the Series, or any recognizable characters from either show. However, any characters that are not from either show are mine and I will use and abuse them as I see fit. Everyone else will be returned eventually, for I am only borrowing for a while, but they might end up a bit scuffed.

A/N: This story fits into my Immortal Spacemonkey universe and takes place in the eighth season. There are some references that refer to things that happened five thousand years before which is understandable if you have read already Moebius: An Immortal Spacemonkey Story. It would also help if you have read Confession is Good For the Soul.

Also, the events of Highlander the Movie didn't happen. The Gathering didn't happen and neither did the shitty movies that followed the first movie.

I hope you enjoy it and as always, feel free to drop me a review, even if you don't like the story. Constructive criticism is always welcome; flames are not. Manners matter.

* * *

The members of SG-1 went out that night for dinner and some bowling. Jack was super insistent on going bowling for some reason. Daniel, not having it in him to voice an objection that he knew would either be overruled or flat out ignored, went along with it. He even had a pretty good time and was able to shove the sorrow and shame he was feeling to a back recess of his mind. It wasn't gone for good, it was just compartmentalized; compartmentalization was something he was very good when it came to his feelings.

The next morning he got up early, determined to clean out his basement. Sam had made a crack about the amount of crap he kept down there and he knew it needed to be dealt with in the near future.

When he was about half way through the far left corner of the basement, he had put in at least three hours of labor and about one hour of being distracted by an old book he had been looking for, his cell phone buzzed.

_Really Old Guy_, showed up on the display.

"Hello, Old Man," he said, fanning a cloud of dust away.

"There is a Master's thesis presentation tonight over at Mountain State, discussing the legacy of Ancient Egypt as the archetype of Western Civilization. Some of us that are off tonight thought we might check it out. You up for a good laugh?" Methos, also known as Adam or Dr. Pierson, asked.

"Hello to you too," Daniel snarked.

Methos did some deep breathing before responding to his old friend. "Hello. How are you? Would you like to go see some poor schmuck defend his Master's thesis in front of a bunch of not-so-scary college professors?"

"Do you plan on destroying some poor kid's hard work and mental well-being for shits and giggles?" Daniel asked, wondering what Death had in store for some poor grad student.

"Why do you always think the worst of me?" Methos asked, feigning outrage.

Daniel shook his head in exasperation. "Because that is exactly what you did the last time we went to a thesis defense. You made the kid cry on stage. In front of the entire history department. In front of his girlfriend and his roommate. You were asked to leave by campus security."

"It's for the best really. You were interested in recruiting the kid and if he couldn't stand up to questions about his Master's thesis, how could you expect for him to withstand the rigors of day-to-day life in the SGC?" the other Immortal asked, somewhat amused.

"Fair point," Daniel conceded, taking off his glasses and holding them up to the light to see how much dust coated the lenses, "but it was a jerk move. You made the history department change its rules. Questions are no longer allowed to come from the audience. Is this presentation and the presenter worth the bother?"

"Actually yes. Gavin Fischer is a pretty good researcher. His adviser, Dr. Hastings, was talking him up a few weeks ago."

"Dr. Hastings?"

"Jane's an associate professor of history who lives a few houses down from me."

"Is she the older lady who is apparently sweet on you?" Daniel asked absently, trying to clean his dusty glasses on his dusty shirt. Needless to say, he wasn't being very successful in his endeavor.

"No, that is Doris, the neighborhood crazy cat lady who makes a mean rum punch and knits tiny vests for her cats. Jane is the tall lady with all of the roses in her front yard."

"Doesn't mean a thing to me," Daniel said absently, giving up on trying to clean his glasses.

"Are you in or not? Nyan is coming too," Methos added, mentioning everyone's favorite alien that wasn't Teal'c. "And Dr. Lopez."

"Fine," Daniel sighed. "What time and do you want to pick me up?"

"Did your car crap out on you or something?"

"No, it is just in the shop for routine maintenance and I have to pick it up tomorrow morning. So what time are you coming to get me?" Daniel explained.

"The presentation is at seven, so I will be by your place at five thirty so we can get something to eat before the show."

"Good. See you then," Daniel said and snapped his phone shut.

~SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1~

Methos arrived on time, with Nyan riding shotgun.

"Daniel," Nyan greeted his boss. "Do you want to ride up front?" the research assistant asked, making a move to move to the back seat.

Daniel shook his head. "No thank you Nyan. I would rather sit behind Adam so it will be easier for me to strangle him," He said in an almost cheery tone, letting the alien-human think he was kidding.

"Like to see you try," Methos snorted. "So what has got your panties in a bunch?"

The other Immortal grumbled slightly. "Sorry," he apologized. "Just a little pissy. The last mission sucked. It brought up some unpleasant memories. We had to confess all of our sins and crimes."

Methos blanched a little at that. "That must have been interesting."

"Confession is supposed to make you feel better," Daniel said. "This just made me feel worse about my life."

"Live, grow stronger, fight another day," Methos advised, using words that he knew Daniel would understand.

Daniel sighed heavily. "Yeah. Someone once told me that a long time ago."

Methos smiled, glancing back at his friend in the rearview mirror. "Must have been someone wise and good looking."

Daniel snorted out a laugh. "No," he said. "It was you."

Methos affected a hurt expression. "Your words wound my tender soul."

"Oh, poor thing."

Nyan just sat there, listening to the two friends bicker and good naturedly pick on each other, like they were centuries-long friends.

They decided on going to Pizzeria Rustica on Colorado Avenue. It was a quaint, small space that specialized in Neapolitan-thin style pizza made from locally sourced ingredients. Nyan had never been there, while Daniel and Methos had both been there a few times.

They had decided on their drinks and appetizers with little fanfare, until Nyan asked if they made Hawaiian pizza.

Everything came to a crashing halt and heads were turned.

"We specialize in authentic food, not some unholy bastardization of pizza," the server, a tall skinny girl, with a nose ring and purple hair said in a very snotty voice. "The ingredients of pizza should complement the dish, not overwhelm it."

Poor Nyan, never having experienced a public derision of his favorite Earth food before, sat there quietly, looking slightly mortified.

Methos, not Adam, looked at the girl with ill-concealed contempt. "I get it that pineapple on pizza may not be everyone's cup of tea, but you don't need to be rude about it." His voice was calm, but low and slightly scary. He really liked Nyan, saw him as a gentle little brother who's quest for knowledge to be cheering and something that should be nurtured.

The server, seeing the dark and chilling look the older man was giving her, gulped and apologized.

Methos glared, while Daniel and Nyan smiled awkwardly. They went on to order their food and the waitress scurried away as fast as possible.

"How is it that pistachio is an acceptable pizza topping, but not pineapple?" Daniel asked, after taking a drink from his beer. "I mean, I am not pro-pineapple myself, but it seems to me to be a double standard in pizza etiquette."

"Is it Italian?" Nyan asked, having recovered from his experience with the server.

Methos shook his head and took a long drink of his beer before answering. "They originated in western Asia and Asia Minor and were not introduced to Italy until the first century A.D."

Daniel just rolled his eyes. "How is it that you know obscure facts like that, but are totally clueless on other things?"

"Like what?"

"Baseball. Even I know about baseball," Daniel retorted.

"Then explain the designated hitter position in the American League," Methos challenged his friend.

"The purpose of the designated hitter is to allow the pitcher to rest his arm and focus on his pitching skills and avoid risking injury. Also, most pitchers are worthless as hitters and the DH gives opportunities to sluggers who are challenged in their defensive skills but can still swing with the best of them," Daniel said, looking smug.

"Fair enough," Methos raised his beer slightly, saluting his friend.

The rest of their time at the restaurant was pretty pleasant. The server was quick to bring them their food and made sure to keep their water glasses full. She did not linger to chat them up and gave them the bill as soon as possible.

Methos took the bill, looked it over, and handed it off to Daniel. "Boss?" the Immortal looked at his friend with an almost angelic look on his face. Nyan attempted to pull out his wallet, but was waved off by Methos.

Daniel shook his head at Nyan, just as fond of the guy as everyone else, rolled his eyes at his old friend, and snatched the bill from Methos' hand.

"A good boss takes care of his employees," Methos reminded Daniel.

"Good employees don't give their boss a hard time," Daniel said lightly as he pulled out several twenties from his wallet. In reality, he didn't mind paying for their meal. It was only money and he did have plenty of it in several bank accounts. He did not leave much of a tip for the waitress. She was pretty rude to Nyan after all.

~SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1~

They made it to the thesis defense in plenty of time and found Dr. Lopez and Dr. Angela Hillman, another linguist at the SGC, waiting for them, seated towards the back.

The student, the third one in line, finally presented his argument that the Egyptian culture was the archetype for Western Culture. He was able to back up his arguments that due to the multilevel and rich culture of Ancient Egypt, this was translated and served as a foundation for the development of Greek and Roman societies. Without the Egyptian culture, the idea of an omnipotent god and nation-state would not have been possible.

He made interesting arguments, pulled in Jungian views of religion, the self, and the state and how those came from Ancient Egypt and the world view of those that lived in that period of time.

When Mr. Fischer brought in how Nut, Ra, and Osiris had parallels to Christianity, the group from the SGC barely suppressed snorts of derision. Having met, and killed, a few Egyptian "gods," the group had a hard time accepting the comparison. The student made a sound argument for his paper, but because of the reality of the myth that they had to face at the SGC on a daily basis, it was hard to take the idea completely serious.

Once the presentation and criticisms came to a halt, the next student came forth. The members of the archeology and linguistics division of the SGC all looked at each other, nodding. They approved of how Mr. Fischer structured his arguments and responded to questions and criticisms flung at him by the faculty.

Finally, after sitting through a painfully boring presentation on the history of suburbs, the production was over.

The others moved forward to meet Gavin Fischer, while Daniel hung back. His academic reputation still had him labeled as a kook in certain circles and he would rather not have to deal with asshole faculty members potentially scaring the kid away.

The others talked to the grad student for a little bit before Methos led the kid over to Daniel.

They did the usual meet and greet, with Daniel asking a few questions about his thesis and other academic classes he had taken, especially any expertise in foreign or dead languages. Finally, Daniel hands him a business card with his email printed on it and asks the student to send him his resume and academic record and that he, Daniel, might have a possible position that Fischer might be interested in. At that point, Fischer got a slightly wry and apologetic look on his face.

"I am sorry, but I was offered a post graduate position with a think tank and learning institution in Paris and I start in June," the grad student said, looking happy, but not wanting to be rude about it. "It sounds super exciting and promises to be something that will blow my mind with the way they look at and teach history."

Methos, at this point joined in on the conversation. "What is the name of this school?"

"Academie de le Surveiller et Enreistrement de Paris," he said.

At that Methos let out a snort of laughter, which caused a worried expression to cross Fischer's face.

"Do you know the group then? Did I make a mistake?" he worried.

Daniel rolled his eyes at his friend. "Ignore him Gavin, Adam sometimes lacks manners. He used to be with them, before he came to work in my department. You are not making a mistake," he said gently, trying to dispel any doubts the kid might have. "What you will learn there will change your life and will lead you to something amazing. However, still send me your resume. Eventually, most people do get sent out of the academy and work outside of their classrooms and libraries. We might have what you are looking for eventually."

Gavin looked slightly unsure of what exactly Daniel was telling him, but took the proffered business card. He turned to leave but Methos called him back.

"When you get there and go through orientation, do me a favor and tell Dr. Comtrois that Adam Pierson says hello," he said with a big smile on his face.

"Really?" Daniel muttered to his friend while keeping a smile on his face.

Gavin said he would and left immediately.

"He'll be back," Methos said with an air of certainty.

"I hope so and hopefully can pass our background check. Abbott is going to retire from the military in the next year or two. What is an Immortal to do without some creepy Watcher recording our every move?" Daniel asked, laughing.

"I don't know, save the galaxy? Live in peace without a creeper recording what brand of toilet paper we use?" Methos retorted.

"Aren't you the pot calling the kettle black with that one, _Adam_?"

Adam shrugged. "I didn't spy on other Immortals. I just spied upon the spies, protecting myself in the process. Besides, didn't you do the very same thing, once upon a time?"

Daniel shrugged. "I admit nothing."

Soon after the group from the SGC left, not wanting to interview anyone else (the student who did his master's thesis on suburbs did not whet their interest). Dr. Lopez offered to take Nyan back home. Nyan was quite happy about the offer since he had been crushing on the perky doctor for some time.

Methos of course was willing to drive Daniel back to his home, but said he wanted to stop off at his own home first. He had found a copy of "The Ancient Book of Deer," the oldest known Gaelic text in existence. His copy was much younger than the original, the original was from the pre-Norman Scotland era; Methos' copy was a copy of the original from the 1800s.

Daniel wanted a look at it, out of academic curiosity. For once, it had nothing to do with the Stargate, false gods, or the fate of the galaxy. He just wanted something fun to read. It was either this or "War and Peace" again.

They were inside Methos' current home, a nice three bedroom, sparely furnished bungalow. One of the walls in his living room was filled with book shelves. Some of the books were classics, and the Harry Potter books, books one through four.

"What's Harry Potter?" Daniel asked absently, looking at the book covers, clearly convinced that they were kid books.

Methos looked up from the book he was currently holding, 'The Ancient Book of Deer,' and gave his friend an incredulous look. "How can you not know who Harry Potter is? Everyone knows who Harry Potter is,' he exclaimed.

"Well, apparently not, since I don't," Daniel shot back, picking up the first book, "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone," and thumbing through it absently.

"Teal'c even knows who Harry Potter is," Methos replied. "Take it with you. You might enjoy it."

Just then the presence of another Immortal made itself known, washing over Methos and Daniel, causing their heads to start pounding.

"Expecting someone?" Daniel asked, his eyes narrowed, not recognizing the particular Quickening he was feeling.

"Hardly," Methos snorted, hoping against hope that it wasn't whom he thought it was.

With his sword in hand, Methos crept over to the large double window and looked out at his front porch to see who was setting off his Immortal early alert system and ringing his doorbell at the same time.

"Sonofabitch," Methos sighed and stomped over to the front door and flung it open to reveal Duncan Macleod, of the Clan Macleod, standing there.

"Shit," Daniel and Duncan both exclaimed upon seeing each other through the open door.

* * *

A/N: Well, what did you think? Hit the shiny review button and let me know what think. All constructive criticisms are welcome, flames are not. Thank you though for reading my story. It is appreciated.

Thank you to Lorilei for your help and suggestions. PS…happy birthday, sorry your Spacemonkey is not nekked. He wouldn't cooperate this time.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Disclaimer: As much as I might wish, I do not own Stargate: SG1, Highlander: the Series, or any recognizable characters from either show. However, any characters that are not from either show are mine and I will use and abuse them as I see fit. Everyone else will be returned eventually, for I am only borrowing for a while, but they might end up a bit scuffed.

* * *

Duncan Macleod, of the clan Macleod, stood in the doorway staring at the man he had known as Denis Chevallier, a few centuries before. While they didn't spend a tremendous amount of time in each other's company, Daniel had left an impression upon the man, namely for beheading Macleod's lady friend.

The Highlander sized Daniel up, noting the short hair, wire-rimmed glasses, and the lack of a sword in hand. That didn't mean he was harmless or unarmed.

"What are you doing here?" Macleod accused Daniel, looking at him with sharp eyes, evaluating the other Immortal.

Daniel rolled his eyes. "Borrowing a book. What are you doing here?" Daniel shot back, immediately irritated by the Scot.

"I'm here to see my friend Adam. He called awhile back, asking to borrow my copy of the Book of the Deer, and I thought I would see how he was doing," Macleod.

"You could have called Macleod," Methos called. "I don't need you to check up on me. I've been just fine."

"It has been a couple of years, I was worried."

"You could have asked Joe how I was doing. I've been in regular contact with him. Or even Amanda," Methos said lightly, slightly chuckling, remembering the madness that he and Amanda got into while tracking down the rogue Watcher that was stupid enough to get a snake stuck in him. "I don't need a protector."

"Maybe you do," Macleod said crossly, arms folded over his chest, glaring at Daniel.

Daniel grinned. "Oh no Methos! He figured me out and my dastardly plan to take your head. Good thing the Highlander showed up to protect you from Hades." He was enjoying this.

"Hades?" Macleod asked, looking slightly troubled.

"You need to read up on your Book of Revelations. I looked, and there before me was a pale horse. Its rider was named Death and Hades was following close behind him," Daniel recited, giving the younger Immortal a level look.

Methos grumbled something about shitty friends in Sumerian. "Knock it off you two and get inside Macleod before my neighbors start talking. Daniel is a friend whom I trust implicitly, so relax."

Daniel, he knew he was being a jerk, but he couldn't help himself. Macleod rubbed him the wrong way. On the other hand, Methos, of all people, was telling him to be nice. Methos never told him to be nice. It was usually the other way around.

"Fine," Daniel blew out a breath, doing his best to wipe the smirk off his face.

Macleod looked at Daniel with ill-concealed distrust, but nodded before he stepped through the doorway.

"Well, no introductions are necessary," Methos said, shutting the front door behind his friend from Seacouver.

Daniel rolled his eyes at his friend. "No. We remember each other perfectly."

*Flashback*

Once the Quickening storm has subsided, Daniel found himself on his knees in the middle of a dirt alley, a few streets down from the tavern he had originally been in. His sword lay by his side, having fallen from his grip. He was exhausted, breathing hard, but at the same time, filled with an energy that wasn't his.

Daniel had survived another challenge and had come away victorious. It had come at a cost though.

Duncan Macleod stood there in the alley, his arms crossed; his eyes looking at Daniel with a hard expression. His friend Lillian had just been killed by the Immortal he had just recently met. It had been a fair fight, within the rules of the Game, but it still made him mad. There had been no point to this fight that he could see. Had Denis been just lying in wait to kill him, but chose to kill Lillian instead, picking her because she was a woman, afraid to fight a man?

Daniel looked up at Macleod with no small amount of irritation. "She was going to kill you Macleod. She was just setting you up, seeing you as an easy target."

Duncan looked startled, wondering if Denis could read minds.

Daniel snorted. "You talk to yourself out loud Macleod. She was going to kill you once she had the chance. She had done it before, Immortals and mortals alike. She killed my mortal wife and child to get to me, but escaped before I could get to her once she figured out that I wasn't some inexperienced newly awakened Immortal."

"You didn't have to kill her. She could have changed, given the chance," Duncan argued.

Rolling his eyes, Daniel laughed hollowly. "She had nearly two thousand years to change, but no. She kept on with her ways, killing and taking what she wanted, never caring about who she hurt in the process. Redemption, while possible for many, isn't possible for those who don't seek it."

"I don't like killing women," Duncan retorted, implying that he doesn't think much of those that do kill women.

Daniel shakily got up off his knees, trying to not think about what he might have knelt in, ignoring the headless body nearby, his sword in hand. "Unless you are insane, you aren't supposed to like killing anyone. I will say that women are just as capable as men, and you can't allow your chivalrous world view to let you treat a female opponent any different from a man. The young can be so ignorant," he muttered to himself.

"She was my friend."

"You might have been her friend Macleod, but she wasn't your friend. So what now, we fight it out?" Daniel asked, his sword down, but ready for a possible attack. He didn't think he would be able to put up a strong defense if Macleod challenged him now, but he would be damned if he would go quietly into the night.

Duncan Macleod, of the clan Macleod, stood there, his hand on the hilt of his sword, but had not drawn it yet.

"No," he replied slowly. "My honor won't allow for that. However, if I see you again, you will feel the steel of my sword."

Daniel rolled his eyes once again, convinced that if he did it one more time, they would get stuck. "Thank you. Good luck to you Macleod," he said, spotting a distant figure hiding behind a cart in the street. _My Watcher_, he thought to himself.

With that, both Immortals departed, Daniel taking Lillian's sword with him, each going their separate ways, leaving the body and head for the Watchers to dispose of.

*Present time*

"Methos, I'm going to borrow your car and get myself home. I'll come by in the morning to get you for work. I need to go. Thank you for the books," Daniel said, snatching up his old friend's keys from the hallway table they were sitting on and quickly left, not waiting for a reply.

"Well, that was cheery," Methos said, sighing deeply. "Come in, have a seat Macleod," he finished, sitting down himself in a comfortable arm chair, after first going to the kitchen and pulling a beer out of the fridge and popping the top off which landed somewhere.

"Why are you hanging out with the likes of him?" Duncan grumbled, but also sat down on the sofa across from his friend.

"He is a friend Macleod," Methos replied, taking a long pull from his beer.

"He is without a sense of honor," Macleod pronounced, not realizing, hearing that pissed Methos off.

"Daniel is possibly one of the most honorable men I have ever met. He has repeatedly sacrificed himself for others and in defense of," here he almost said 'the planet' but stopped himself in time, "his teammates and innocent bystanders. There is no one I know as good of a person as him, so watch it Macleod. He's no saint, but he is a good person. Give him a chance," Methos said with full conviction behind his words. "Besides, you knew him for maybe one day nearly two hundred years ago? How can you judge someone like that when you don't even know him?"

Duncan realizing that he was stepping over the line, immediately backed off. "Fine. So what are you doing these days? I thought you said you had received a teaching position out here."

Methos smiled. "I did, but I got a better job offer with the Air Force."

"The Air Force? As in, the United States' Air Force? Are you insane? What if they find out about you?"

Methos shrugged. "It is a chance that someone could know about us, but it is worth it. I really love what I do," he said. "Plus my immediate boss is Daniel and the base commander already knows about Immortals thanks to Daniel. Those two really are best friends and General O'Neill would rather shoot himself than betray his best friend. The man isn't about to tell the Pentagon about Immortals. I trust him, and you know how few people I actually trust."

Duncan continued to sputter and warn his friend that he was being reckless.

"What I do is worth it Macleod. I actually enjoy getting up and going to work," he said, ignoring the disbelieving look on Duncan's face. "I know I worked very hard letting everyone think I don't care about anything and that I am happy to sit on a beach and drink myself blind, but this job is fascinating."

"So, you have given up wasting away your life on the beaches of Aruba, getting drunk?"

Methos laughed at that. "Of course not! I just get the government to pay for it. Since I actually have to show up to work tomorrow, I'm going to bed. You are welcome to use my guest bedroom and if I don't see you in the morning, you might want to go out for breakfast. I don't have much in the kitchen." With that, Methos turned his back on his friend and went into his bedroom and locked the door. While he did trust Macleod, he didn't like to leave himself open to a possible attack. It was better to be paranoid than headless.

* * *

A/N: Well, what did you think? Hit the shiny review button and let me know what think. All constructive criticisms are welcome, flames are not. Thank you though for reading my story. It is appreciated.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Disclaimer: As much as I might wish, I do not own Stargate: SG1, Highlander: the Series, or any recognizable characters from either show. However, any characters that are not from either show are mine and I will use and abuse them as I see fit. Everyone else will be returned eventually, for I am only borrowing for a while, but they might end up a bit scuffed.

* * *

The next morning, at 6:30 sharp, Daniel returned with Methos' car. Steeling himself, promising himself that he would mind his manners and not lay into MacLeod, he parked the car in the driveway, went to the front door, and rang the bell while clearly feeling the presence of two different Immortals.

Duncan answered the door, glaring at Daniel, but not saying a word.

Daniel did his best to keep a sarcastic smile off his face and entered the residence.

"Is the Old Man ready?" he called out. "I have a briefing at 0800 hours and I need to pick up my car. Also, my staff is supposed to have a meeting today at 1000 hours. I would hate it if one of my staff members was late."

"Keep your shirt on," Methos called, coming out of the bathroom, wiping traces of shaving cream off his face. "Are we discussing the budget and possible recruits or is that next week?"

"Budget is this week and the schedule for the upcoming language classes. Recruits are next week. I have to finish going through the personnel files the General gave me," Daniel replied, making sure he didn't mention the wrong thing in front of Macleod.

"Okay then, I'm ready," Methos called out to Daniel then turned to Duncan. "I'll be back tonight. Make yourself at home."

With that, the two Immortals left the house and drove quickly over to the dealership where Daniel had left his car the day before.

Methos let him out and then drove off, knowing that Daniel was a big boy and didn't need him to make sure that everything was okay.

Daniel went in, paid for his car after listening to the head mechanic explain about what was done to the car, understanding maybe only fifteen percent of what was being said.

He also didn't notice that on the undercarriage was a very discretely placed GPS tracker.

~SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1~

The day went by quickly, per usual. Meetings were had, briefings were held, and Daniel came very close to kicking Jack out of his office. Granted, Jack was the commanding officer of the SGC and could not be kicked out of anyone's office, without good reason (safety and patient privacy being the only reasons), but he managed to drive Daniel slightly insane as he fiddled with several of the artifacts that SG-2 brought back from PX9-435.

Luckily, none of the artifacts were capable of anything dangerous, well except one. The one that presented a small amount of danger, when pressed in a certain area let out high pitched alarm that wouldn't shut off no matter how many times the spot was pressed. Daniel, in an act of desperation, for he was convinced that his ears were about to start bleeding, took a hammer to the device and smashed it into several tiny pieces.

"Whoa," Jack exclaimed, his eyes wide and was shaking his head, trying to stop the ringing he was hearing.

Daniel glowered at his friend. "Don't you have something else to do? Like running the base, talking to politicians, negotiating treaties between planets, authorizing Sam to blow up another sun?" he yelled at his friend, his ears still ringing.

"Testy aren't we," Jack snarked, overly loud himself.

"Who me? Why would I ever be testy? In the past week, I've only had to confess every shitty thing I've done in my life, had an annoyance from my past show up at Adam's front door last night, spent over two hundred dollars on my car, and now I've destroyed a priceless artifact! Why would I ever be testy Jack," Daniel ranted, doing his best to not throw the hammer at the wall in frustration.

"Go to your happy place Danny. You're in a safe space, use your words," Jack intoned, using a calming voice he used when Charlie had been throwing a temper tantrum. It always worked with him, surely it would work with a five thousand year old Immortal.

"Jack I can kill you in at least five different ways with my pencil," Daniel snarked back, feeling the tension bleed away.

"Aren't you the grumpy pants? So who showed up at Adam's house that has got you in such a snit?" Jack asked, leaning forward on to the work table, his arms semi stretched out, his hands folded.

Daniel sighed and took off his glasses to scrub his eyes. "Duncan MacLeod of the clan MacLeod showed up to see Adam unexpectedly."

"I take it that it wasn't a welcome event on your part?" Jack pressed.

Daniel shook his head. "I killed a friend of his in Paris, and he hasn't liked me since then. I've had a few run-ins with him over the years, but I always made a quick exit, not wanting to deal with him and his self-righteous attitude."

"Do you think he could beat you in a fight," Jack then asked, looking at his friend with no small amount of concern. "Do you think he is here for your head?"

The Immortal shook his head. "Duncan MacLeod is many things, but he is not a headhunter. As for being able to beat me, thanks for the vote of confidence pal."

"I didn't mean it like that," Jack said exasperatedly.

"He is very skilled fighter," Daniel said, being reasonably.

"So are you," Jack pointed out.

"Thank you," Daniel said, smiling tiredly. "However, I feel no need to fight him and take his head. He is a pretty good guy, despite his holier-than-thou attitude, and the Immortal world always needs decent people. However, he does carry a grudge like no one else that isn't a former Horseman. I also killed another friend of his several years ago. He doesn't know that it was me though."

"Who did you kill? His girlfriend?"

Daniel laughed at that one. "His girlfriend would be Amanda, well, on again-off-again girlfriend. She is too infuriating and too lovable to make me want to actually kill her. No, I killed Cassandra, the witch of Dongal Woods, former slave to the Horsemen."

"Why?" Jack asked, hearing of this for the first time. "When did this happen?"

"It was not too long after I got back from Abydos. I ran into Connor MacLeod, same clan, different vintage. I had met him in the Seventies in New York City. He thought I was a newbie Immortal at the time and I didn't do too much to dissuade him from that idea. When I ran into him here in Colorado, he was being chased by Cassandra because she wanted revenge against Duncan for sparing Adam's life. She wanted to kill him to get back at Duncan, but found me instead by chance. I was one of the people she hated the most. Long story short, she kidnapped him to force me to come and fight her. We fought, she lost," Daniel explained, keeping his voice calm and devoid of emotion. It was what it was and there was no need for emotions or even regrets. Cassandra made her bed and he killed her for it. It was the way of Immortals.

"Well," Jack said, doing his best to be the voice of reason, "she is the one who picked the fight."

Daniel smiled at Jack being the reasonable individual in the conversation. Who would have thunk that Jack would be the sensible one? "I know and I don't regret killing the crazy lady, but not many people know that she is dead. Even the Watchers don't know exactly who killed her."

"You didn't tell Abbott?" Jack asked. "What kind of Watcher is he if he doesn't know you killed someone?" Jack asked, then caught himself. "And that has got to be the weirdest statement ever."

"You've said weirder things, "Daniel laughed. "He doesn't know everything about me. Hell, the Watchers aren't even sure exactly how old I really am. And I didn't tell Abbott at the time because I had just met him and I wasn't sure if I could trust him at the time. It's not normal for an Immortal and a Watcher to buddy up."

"Daniel, Immortal or not, normal is never how I would describe anything associated with you."

"Thanks?" Daniel looked a bit off-put by that, but straightened up, feeling the familiar sensation of another Immortal's approach wash over him.

A knock at the door interrupted anything Jack might have said.

Methos then walked in, followed by Sergeant Harriman.

"General," Harriman began, "your conference call with the Pentagon is in five minutes."

"Ah," Jack sighed. "The work never ends. Daniel, we'll talk later. Adam, nice to see you." With that, Jack breezed out of the office, Sergeant Harriman following in his wake.

"Yes?" Daniel asked as Methos shut the door.

Methos was smiling, but it was a pain-filled smile, like he was about to ask Daniel to do something that he knew the other was not going to like.

"I'm leaving in a few hours for PX9-587," Methos said, throwing himself on Daniel's couch. "And why is the artifact from PX5-362 in little pieces on your desk."

Daniel growled slightly. "Jack was fiddling with it, set off some sort of alarm and we couldn't get it to stop. My hammer seemed the best way to make it stop. And why are you leaving for PX9-587? I thought that SG-3 was on that mission?"

The other Immortal laughed at that one. "They are, but one of Reynold's men came down with a slight case of he literally ran into Siler on the stairs. Silar is fine of course. Doug has a broken leg."

Daniel shook his head. Poor Doug. "Okay, so why are you looking like you are about to ask me to do something I won't like?"

"Um, because I am?" Methos posited.

Taking a deep breath, Daniel steeled himself. "What do you need me to do? If it entails me entertaining the Highlander, I might dial up Neto and go enjoy myself in hell."

"You don't have to entertain him, and I did text him letting him know that I wasn't going to be home for a few days. If you could collect my mail for me and reassure him that you have not beheaded me, it would be appreciated," Methos asked, with a winning smile on his face. Or at least he thought it was a winning smile. "Just go talk to him. You and him have irritated each other for long enough."

"I never would have thought that you would be playing the peacemaker," Daniel observed, crossing his arms across his chest.

"Well, I never thought I would be traveling across the galaxy, looking for super cool weapons to use against the bad guys _you_ have managed to piss off over the years, but here we are." Methos retorted.

Daniel smiled a little at that one. "Fine," he said finally. "I can't promise anything, but I'll try to be civil at the very least."

"Daniel, you have the ability to negotiate peace treaties between civilizations that have hated each other for centuries and Earth. Surely you can be nice to someone for a few days?"

The perennial peaceful archeologist just rolled his eyes. "Don't forget I was kicked out of the glow club, as Jack put it, because of my stubborn, argumentative ways."

Methos laughed. "Fair point, but still. You can get along with almost anyone. Just get my mail and reassure MacLeod that you have not killed me and are hiding the body under Cheyenne Mountain.

"Switching subjects," Methos said suddenly, "how was the book?"

Daniel tried to look busy, picking up a random piece of paper on his desk, not realizing that the paper was upside down. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"How late were you up and how far did you get?"

Daniel looked slightly sheepish. "It was late. I'm up to just past Harry's first Quidditch match."

Methos just laughed at his friend, amused that stuffy, academic Daniel Jackson was taken by Harry Potter.

~SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1~

That evening, once the work day was over, Daniel drove over the Methos' house. The whole drive over there, he was talking himself up, preparing himself to be nice and kind as ever and to not rip MacLeod's head off. He was Daniel Jackson, peace-loving, kind to small animals and children, the one who would rather die himself than seeing others suffer. If he could put up with the annoyance of the Goa'uld and the arrogance of the Tok'ra, surely he could make nice with Duncan MacLeod.

"Where is Methos?" MacLeod barked at Daniel as he came through the door.

So much for the pep talk.

"He got called up for a mission. He'll be back in a few days," Daniel said tossing the other Immortal's mail onto a hallway table.

"How do I know that you aren't telling me a tale?" Duncan pressed, his slight Scottish accent becoming more evident.

Daniel shrugged. "I didn't kill him if that is what you are thinking. He is on a mission and you are not cleared for the details," Daniel said, trying his best to keep a tone of sarcasm out of his voice.

"There is no way he is on a mission and will be back in a few days. Afghanistan and Iraq are too far away for that," Duncan shot back, his dark eyes narrowed.

"He is not going to either place. I've been to both with the military and neither place holds much relevance to the SGC these days. Honestly, I cannot tell you anything more than that, beyond that he will be back in a few days. His mission is supposed to be an easy one, mostly making nice with the locals and serving as a translator if need be," Daniel said, trying to stay calm. He hated explaining things to people that were not involved in the Stargate Program and only giving them a sliver of the truth, if that much. He knew that the explanation was hollow and lacking, but there was nothing he could do about it; such was the nature of working for a classified operation.

"I don't trust you," the Scot said suddenly.

Daniel shrugged, his hands shoved casually in the pockets of his jeans. "That is not my problem. Methos is one of the last people in the world I would ever turn my hand against. He was there for me when I was at my lowest, several times over. He never judged me or threw my past in my face, even when I probably deserved it. I trust the Old Man more than anyone, outside of Jack and the other members of my team."

MacLeod stood there, his arms folded across his broad chest, glaring at the other Immortal.

"I don't turn on friends MacLeod," Daniel bit out, looking annoyed, feeling slightly ashamed of how he just made the other flinch at that one. It was a low blow and he knew it.

"You know nothing about me," Duncan hissed, his eyes flashing with anger.

Daniel stood there, his head slightly cocked, sizing MacLeod up. "And you know nothing about me, other than the fight I had with Lillian. That bitch was a psycho and I did you a favor by killing her. She was planning on killing you and here you are, going on, acting like I killed Mother Theresa."

"She could have changed," Duncan countered.

Daniel scoffed at that and stood right in MacLeod's face. "She was not capable of changing because she saw no reason to change. A person changes for the good because they want to, not because you want them to. You are old enough to know this. I had her memories inside of me, I knew what she was planning on doing to you. I knew what she had done to others, beside me. She killed my wife and child. She had killed plenty of others just like that over the centuries, mortals and Immortals alike. She couldn't be helped because she saw nothing wrong with what she was doing."

"Amanda changed," Duncan threw that out, knowing immediately that he was going to lose this argument but he couldn't bring himself to back down.

At that, Daniel laughed. "Amanda is not, nor has she ever been, evil. Self-centered and vain, yes, but not evil. She is the type that would help a turtle cross the road so it wouldn't get squished by on-coming traffic. Granted if the turtle was in possession of a treasure trove of jewels, she would steal them first, but she wouldn't kill the turtle in the process."

"And you know so much," Duncan growled, ignoring the feeling of doubt about whether or not the man before him was a heartless monster.

"I don't know everything MacLeod. I've screwed up plenty of times," at this he mumbled Stupid Glow Club, "but I do know that if someone doesn't want to change, they won't and Lillian saw nothing wrong with what she did to others." At this Daniel, exhausted from the anger of the situation, backed off, removed himself from Duncan's circle of personal space.

"I believe in second chances, but only for ones who truly want one. The gods know I've been given second chances several times over, but I've wanted it. I wanted to make a change or make a difference, but not everyone does or is capable of asking for a chance to make things better," Daniel said tiredly, moving over to collapse on the couch.

"Aye," Duncan grumbled, "you have a point I guess."

"Occasionally I do have them," Daniel agreed, his eyes closed, his head tipped backwards.

"So what now?" Duncan asked, dropping into a cushy chair across from Daniel.

Just then Daniel's phone rang. It was Jack.

"Yes Jack?"

Pause

"No Jack."

Longer pause.

"Absolutely not Jack," Daniel replied emphatically. "Nobody in their right mind wants to go on a fishing trip with you, especially at this time of the night and with work in the morning."

Another pause.

"Dinner sounds okay," Daniel said slowly. "Do you mind if I bring a plus one?"

While the words were not clear, one could easily hear a loud excited voice on the other end of the telephone.

"No, not a date," Daniel snorted. "Like I have time for that. Adam's friend Duncan MacLeod is in town and I promised the Old Bastard that I would be a substitute host for him while he was out on a mission."

Only a slight pause this time.

"Okay then. See you in about twenty minutes," Daniel quickly replied and hung up his phone with a satisfying snap.

"That was Jack. He just got home. He invited me over for dinner and the invitation has been extended to you too," Daniel explained, feeling like that this was the right thing to do.

MacLeod looked slightly uneasy.

Daniel shrugged his shoulders. "Our friend Teal'c is also going to be there. They are ordering out from Rancho Grande Cantina since it is Taco Tuesday."

"How do I know you are on the level?" Duncan asked, still suspicious.

Daniel rolled his eyes so hard he thought he could see his brain. "Taco Tuesday is not something I use to lure people to their deaths. It is either this or you go find food on your own."

Duncan looked Daniel up and down, sizing up the other Immortal. Methos had asked him to give Daniel the benefit of the doubt and here the man was, offering him tacos and trying to make peace between the two of them.

"Are the tacos any good?" Duncan asked.

Daniel looked slightly confused. "Is there such thing as bad tacos?"

"Taco Bell," Duncan simply replied, shrugging.

"Fair point," Daniel conceded the argument, nodding in agreement.

~SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1~

They rode over to Jack's house in silence, but at least it wasn't a pained or uncomfortable silence.

By the time they made it over, the tacos and Teal'c had arrived. Jack was busying himself in the kitchen, taking clean plates out of the dishwasher and setting them out on the counter.

"Hello," Daniel called out as he walked through the unlocked door. Jack really needed to do something better about his personal security, like locking the damn door for starters.

"We're here in the kitchen. Beer is in the fridge," Jack yelled back.

Daniel and Duncan both walked through the house towards the back. Duncan noted the picture of Daniel standing with three others, all dressed in military fatigues and smiling, with their arms around each other's shoulders. He also noted a couple of pictures with a young boy in them, but none showing an age progression past the age of nine.

"Where's Sam?" Daniel asked, not seeing the astrophysicist with the others.

"She has a date. With Pete," Jack said shortly, not happy that someone was romancing his longtime second-in-command, but refused to say anything. Plus, it wasn't his place since he kind of had a thing going with Kerry. But he still didn't like it.

"Oh," Daniel said, understanding immediately that Jack was not pleased, but he still wanted to see Sam happy. Pete made her happy.

"Greetings, I am Murray," Teal'c introduced himself to Duncan, being polite.

Daniel shook himself. "Sorry. Duncan MacLeod, this is General Jack O'Neill and our friend and co-worker Teal'c Murray."

Duncan shook the General's hand, noting the firm grip and hard eyes. This was a man who had seen it, done it, and got more than just the t-shirt for his troubles.

He then moved on to Teal'c, who had a more crushing grip and weirdly a symbol, the color of gold, on his forehead, peeking out from underneath a Colorado Avalanche baseball hat.

"May I ask where you are from Mr. Murray?" MacLeod asked, noting the slightly foreign accent the man possessed.

"Teal'c here is from Tanzania," Jack supplied.

"Yes, I am. It is lovely there, but now Colorado Springs is my home," Teal'c then supplied.

"What area of Tanzania are you from?" MacLeod then asked, curious about the man before him.

Teal'c nodded slightly. "Specifically I am from an area southwest of Lake Victoria, between Mawanza, Shinyanga, and Lake Eyasi."

Duncan smiled at that. "You speak Sukuma then. Ekilabu kili hali? Otizonidima-ko!"

Teal'c's eyebrow quirked up slightly. "Your accent is horrible," he replied and left the man to himself, taking his apple juice and plate full of tacos and going into the living room.

Duncan looked mildly surprised at the other man's response. He had been led to believe that there was nothing wrong with his accent.

The night progressed nicely with the men eating dinner and then watching a Twins versus Boston game. Jack, when he wasn't distracted by the game, peppered MacLeod with questions about himself, what he was doing in town, what he did for a living, and how long he was going to be around. He was searching for reassurances that he and Daniel weren't going to fight it out.

"I am an antiques dealer and I teach part-time at Seacouver University," Duncan replied.

"In what area? Fencing?" Jack pressed.

"Jack! Come on!" Daniel said, taking a pull from his bottle, his eyes not leaving the screen. Manny Ramirez was up at bat.

Duncan chuckled slightly. "No. I don't teach fencing. Our fights aren't for sport or leisure like fencing is. Plus I don't think any potential students would like a lesson on how to effectively behead someone, let alone the administration. No, I teach two classes on antiquities and Scottish history. Nothing too exciting, but it does help pass the time. What do you guys do under Cheyanne Mountain?"

"Deep Space Telemetry," all three men replied in unison.

Duncan gave them all dubious looks, but didn't push it. He knew what classified meant and he was not about to get a full answer from any of them.

The game went on and eventually the Twins lost, two to seven, putting Jack in a slightly bad mood. They then switched to a local news station where the anchor was talking about a headless body being found in a city park. Immediately, both Jack and Teal'c looked at both Immortals, silently asking if they had anything to do with it.

Daniel rolled his eyes. "I can't speak for MacLeod here, but not every beheading or strange death involves Immortals."

"I had nothing to do with it," MacLeod also protested. "We don't go around chopping off people's heads every week. And we know how to be discreet."

"Having a fight on top of the Eifel Tower is discreet?"" Daniel asked.

"You know about that," Duncan asked, turning towards Daniel, surprise on his face.

"Yes," Daniel said, exasperated, "everyone knows about that fight. It was the very definition of not being discreet."

"Kalas started it," MacLeod protested. "And what do you mean by everyone?"

"Rumors of the fight between you and Kalas ran through the Immortal community fairly quickly. While I don't have many friends among Immortals that I see on a regular basis, we do have this thing called the telephone and a friend called me and told me about it."

"Who was this friend?" Duncan pressed.

"Who do you think?" Daniel snorted. "Methos of course. It was before the time Kronos tried to reform the Horsemen I think. He was feeling pretty low and needed to talk to someone who would understand. Later, I got into the Watcher's database and got the details myself."

"You hacked someone's computer?" Jack asked, not quite believing Daniel. "Don't get me wrong, I know you know how to use a computer and can put together a slightly less than boring power point presentation, but I didn't know you have real computer skills."

Daniel smiled. "Hacked isn't the right word really. I broke into my Watcher's home while he was out one night and used his computer. His passwords were written on a piece of paper he kept next to the machine. Thomas really did not get the whole secrecy and security thing apparently. And what do you mean, slightly less than boring? My power point presentations are fascinating."

Jack just rolled his eyes.

"What do you mean Kronos tried to reform the Horsemen, DanielJackson?" Teal'c asked, his baritone voice giving way to slight puzzlement.

Daniel looked sideways at Duncan. It was a slightly sensitive subject.

"Kronos, also known as War, decided that it was time for the Horsemen to ride," Duncan explained, looking slightly pained. "He figured that releasing a biological weapon upon the population of France was a fitting way to announce that the gang was back together again."

"Where was AdamPierson in this endeavor?" Teal'c asked, looking slightly troubled.

"Methos was roped into this plan by Kronos. He was with them," Duncan admitted, looking slightly uncomfortable.

Jack looked troubled by this. "You mean to say he was okay with killing France just because his crazy brother said so? Did we hire the Destroyer of Worlds, version two point oh?"

"Destroyer of Worlds?" Duncan asked, looking alarmed.

"Don't ask," Daniel said to MacLeod, but then continued on with the story being told to Jack and Teal'c. "Methos didn't want to slaughter anyone, but him being him, he stuck around to see if there was a way permanently out of Kronos' plan that didn't involve him losing his head. Also, they were his brothers, his friends. They understood him like few others could and didn't judge him for his past."

"Couldn't he have just looked you up for that?' Jack asked, looking slightly appalled.

"He did, eventually. It wasn't a good time for him, especially afterwards," Daniel explained.

"How so? Was he filled with shame for being a part of such a wicked plot?" Teal'c asked, curious about what really went on inside Methos' head.

Daniel sighed. "There is that, but I think what really bothered him was losing your respect, MacLeod, in the process and the fact that he killed Silas. Yes, Silas was a monster, but there was a gentleness to him sometimes and he wasn't always Pestilence. Silas used to be a good and kind person, but he was turned into a monster by the actions of his teacher. I wasn't there for that, but I know what Dilijjan did to him and there was no excuse for that. Killing Silas, for Methos, was like killing a little brother with special needs. It hurt. And then experiencing the double Quickening with you MacLeod, experiencing Kronos' Quickening, hurt also. Kronos, for all of his faults, had been his brother," Daniel quietly explained. "I liken the relationship between the Horsemen, and myself, as an abusive and toxic relationship. You know it is bad for you and that you should leave, but it is familiar and safe. You don't have to pretend that the past doesn't exist and explain things to people who weren't there, who don't know. It was easy and comfortable, where your anger and hate feeds off others and is maintained for a while. It's a lot of history that can't be easily forgotten."

Duncan looked slightly troubled, like he was some reconsidering things. "Where were you during this time? How come Kronos didn't look you up and drag you into his plot to end the world?" he asked Daniel.

"I was in Chicago, in school. Honestly, I am glad he didn't come looking for me, though Methos told me once that he figured Kronos would have eventually sought me out to really reform the band if the bio-terrorism plot had worked," Daniel explained.

"Would you have helped him DanielJackson?" Teal'c asked.

Daniel shook his head emphatically. "Gods no! My refusal to join him would have resulted in a fight between us and I don't know how it would have ended. I had other goals in mind at the time and none of them included destroying the world in the worst way possible. I was far from being crazy or so needy like Kronos was. I wanted to go to school, learn as much as I could, and enjoy a peaceful life. I didn't want attention or people worshipping me like he did apparently. I just wanted to live my life."

"And now you are here and they aren't," Jack observed, sitting back in his chair, tipping his beer at Daniel in a semi-salute.

"Thanks to MacLeod and Methos," Daniel replied.

"Do you miss them?" Duncan suddenly asked Daniel.

"Do I miss the days of utter lunacy? The blood and death we brought to people? Not in a million years," Daniel said. "I like my life. I love what I do. I got over myself and that insanity. If I was that nuts, there is no way the government would let me do what I do."

"Well, several people in the Pentagon do consider those of us in the SGC to be slightly insane," Jack said, laughing.

"Who is more insane? The person who is called insane or the ones who call others insane and not institutionalize the accused?" Teal'c then added his two cents to the conversation.

"Besides," Jack waved away any doubts about the collective mental stability of the base, "the President loves us as long as we don't blow the place up."

"You know the President of the United States?" MacLeod asked, his dark eyes looking at them with no small amount of doubt.

"You don't get to be a General without knowing some big wigs," Jack jokingly bragged.

"Indeed," Teal'c chimed in.

"He's a pretty nice guy, for a politician," Daniel conceded. "He's no Kinsey, that's for sure."

Jack snorted at that. "Has anyone heard from that son-of-a-bitch lately? After he got kicked out of office, he kind of slithered away."

"Kicked out?" Duncan looked slightly puzzled. "The news reports said he had resigned due to poor health."

Jack grimaced slightly at the thought that the bastard was allowed to leave without the door hitting him publically in the ass. "From what I heard, he had some ties with a few corrupt groups within the Deep State of the federal government and it was deemed unacceptable. But don't quote me on that.

"Is his assistant, your former student still with him?" Jack then asked Daniel. "Can you call him up and see if he knows anything? He does owe you, after all."

Daniel looked slightly contemplative. "I last spoke to him a couple of months ago. He told me that he is now an aide to the new Vice President and hasn't had any contact with Kinsey or anyone from the NID."

"The NID?" Duncan asked, looking confused. "What is that?"

Jack shared a quick look with the others before answering. "They are a shadowy, gone rogue government agency. If you want to know, file a Freedom of Information request, otherwise I can't tell you much else. Just know they're a bunch of assholes."

Teal'c and Daniel both nodded in agreement.

"You lead very strange lives," Duncan observed. "How did you get Methos involved in whatever project you work on under a mountain?"

"There are actually several agencies that work out of Cheyanne Mountain, we are just one of them," Jack said, looking slightly smug.

Daniel looked briefly at Jack who nodded at him, but non-verbally told his friend to watch what he said. It was amazing how the original members of SG-1 could communicate with each other without saying a word. It spoke of how long they had been together and how their experiences had melded them into an effective and well-functioning team.

"A few years ago, I had taken a bad Quickening and went slightly insane as a result. They called my friend Adam, hoping that he would know what to do to straighten me out. After we got my head screwed on again, our old boss offered him a job and he joined up with us in Cheyenne Mountain," Daniel briefly explained.

Duncan looked alarmed. "You experienced a Dark Quickening?"

Daniel shook his head. "No. Someone was killed on Holy Ground, not by me, but I happened to be near-by and it didn't settle well. I then got," at this he searched for the right words to use, "hurt pretty bad. The pain and trauma, coupled with an unsettled Quickening, caused me to have a breakdown and I pretty much turned into an asshole. I wasn't awake for most of it, but I was told Methos got the bad Quickening out of me and got me thinking right. From what everyone told to me, I was not a pretty sight before Methos levelled me out."

Jack snorted, while Teal'c merely raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, he got me in my knee, gave Sam a concussion, put three guys in the hospital, and blew up an abandoned house, among other things," Jack explained, avoiding mentioning the three NID agents that Daniel had killed.

"You blew up a house?" Duncan asked, looking slightly alarmed. It was clear that he was wondering if Daniel wasn't still Hades, despite his protests to the contrary.

Daniel rolled his eyes at Jack. "Things got loopy," he said to Duncan, trying to reassure the Immortal, "but it was an extreme moment and not how I normally operated in my day to day life."

"Yes," Jack said in his all-wise-and-knowing voice. "Loopy."

"You," Duncan said, gesturing to everyone in the room, "lead incredibly weird lives."

"Indeed," said Teal'c, agreeing with the Scot.

Eventually, Daniel drove MacLeod home and then drove himself home. Nothing out of the normal happened, but Daniel couldn't help but feel as if was being watched or tracked somehow. He was pretty sure it wasn't a Watcher though.

He made it home and all throughout the night, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse. What he did not see was an unmarked, Chevy sedan, dark in color, with out-of-state license plates sitting several houses down from his own home. Inside the car were two non-descript men briefly talking to each other while a third one was talking on a cellphone. They stayed there for a few hours before a cop car drove past them.

The cop decided, given the hour, to turn around and see what the men were up to, but when he got to the car, nobody was in the car.

Strange.

* * *

A/N: Well, what did you think? Hit the shiny review button and let me know what think. All constructive criticisms are welcome, flames are not. Thank you though for reading my story. It is appreciated

Translation: Ekilabu kili hali? Otizonidima-ko! Where is the bar? Don't touch me there! Thank you to Lori for suggestion that Teal'c tell Duncan that his accent is horrible. I found these phrases somewhere, listing common sayings. I hope they are correct.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Disclaimer: As much as I might wish, I do not own Stargate: SG1, Highlander: the Series, or any recognizable characters from either show. However, any characters that are not from either show are mine and I will use and abuse them as I see fit. Everyone else will be returned eventually, for I am only borrowing for a while, but they might end up a bit scuffed.

* * *

The next day, Daniel drove to work, not taking much notice of the empty car, sitting on his street. Everything was normal, just like yesterday and the day before that.

Work was normal, and by normal that meant nobody threatened Earth with the latest weapon, asteroid, or robot.

After work, Daniel drove over to Methos' home to pick up the mail. Duncan wasn't home, but that didn't worry him. Duncan MacLeod of the clan MacLeod was a big boy and didn't need a babysitter to fuss over him. Instead, Daniel returned the copy of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone to the bookshelf and picked up The Chamber of Secrets.

Originally, he planned on just leafing through the book to get an idea of what it was about, but immediately found himself engrossed in the book, captivated by the world of Harry Potter.

An hour later, Daniel found himself seated on Methos' sofa reading the book, finding it impossible to put down. His trip to Hogwarts was interrupted by the arrival of a Quickening. It felt familiar, yet Daniel was unwilling to assume that it was someone friendly. He knew, however, that it wasn't Methos at the door.

He pulled his Jian out of the folds of his jacket that was draped over the back of the living room's chair and crept towards the large picture window that gave a good view of the front door. He then visibly relaxed and opened the door, revealing Duncan attempting to open the door with his keys.

"Hey," Daniel said, backing away from the other Immortal before stashing his sword back in the folds of his jacket.

"Hello, didn't expect you here," Duncan said, his dark eyes looking sharply at the other Immortal.

"Sorry," Daniel said, feeling slightly sheepish. "I brought in the Old Man's mail and was going to borrow the second Harry Potter book and leave, but I got distracted," he explained, holding up The Chamber of Secrets in his hand.

"I have no idea who Harry Potter is," Duncan said, looking slightly perplexed. "It looks like a kid's book."

"It is and it isn't," Daniel explained. "They are surprisingly good." At this, Daniel tossed the first book to the other Immortal.

Duncan looked at the book with some doubt. The cover was awfully colorful and had a drawing of kid on it.

"It reads much better than what you are thinking. My friend Teal'c loves the series," Daniel advised.

"Have you eaten?" Duncan asked, looking up from the back of the book.

"Not yet."

"I went shopping today. Methos had only beer, eggs, and some questionable take out in his refrigerator," the Scottish Immortal said. "I have some chicken cooking in a crock pot and was going to make some garlic and parmesan rice to go with it. Would you like to stay?"

Daniel briefly considered telling the man, _no thank you_, but he quickly reconsidered it. The Scot was being very hospitable.

"Methos has a crock pot or do you just lug one across the country on the off chance you might need one?" Daniel said instead, looking slightly confused.

Duncan smiled at that one. "While he might lack in actually having something edible around the house, surprisingly he had a small crock pot shoved in the back corner of a cabinet."

Daniel laughed at that one. "Sure, why not?" Daniel decided, finally smelling the chicken cooking.

Duncan also laughed and went into the kitchen to prepare the rice, while Daniel went back to his book.

~SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1~

Dinner was nice. Duncan proved to be an excellent cook.

After helping to clean up the kitchen, Daniel bid Duncan a good night (for it was late and he had to get up early the next day) and left to get in his car only to find it wouldn't start.

Duncan who saw that Daniel, who left his coat and sword in his car, was having trouble with his car, went back into the house for a flashlight and hurried back outside. He had Daniel pop the hood of the car to take a look to see if he could tell what was wrong.

Daniel joined the other Immortal, but didn't understand much of what he was supposed to look for.

"Well, here is your problem," Duncan said, pointing to at least three fuses that had been pulled.

"How did this happen?" Daniel asked, looking puzzled. Even he understood that fuses did not normally unplug themselves.

Whatever Duncan was going to say was cut off by a stinging sensation in the side of his neck. When he put his hand to the spot, he found a dart imbedded in his neck and saw an identical dart in Daniel's neck.

"Oh shit," Daniel slurred as his world started to go dark and he collapsed in the driveway, with Duncan following suit soon after him.

~SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1~

Minutes, hours, maybe even days later Daniel slowly woke, his eyes feeling gritty and slightly burning. His throat felt parched and his mouth tasted like ash. His head was pounding like a troll was trying to bash its way out of his skull. Over all, waking up was not a pleasant experience.

He tried to rub his eyes with his hands, but found he was unable to move his arms. He then tried to move his legs, but found them also rendered immobile.

"Well, this just sucks," Daniel ground out, irritated by his circumstances, doing his best to look around and evaluated where he was and who his captors were.

"You're awake. Good. We can begin," came a voice from across the room. "It took more than what is expected to keep the two of you down. Your head is going to hurt for a while."

Daniel looked over to his right and saw Duncan MacLeod similarly tied up to a chair. The younger Immortal was alert and looked peeved to say the least.

"Why are you doing this? There has been peace between us and the Watchers? Are you followers of Horton?" Duncan demanded, angry that the tentative peace between Immortals and Watchers was being destroyed and he didn't know why it was happening. He hadn't done anything lately to incur the anger of the Watchers.

"What did you do?" Duncan then turned to Daniel, who looked irritated, but, oddly, not surprised.

"They aren't Watchers MacLeod," Daniel replied in Gaelic, pretty confident that their captors didn't know the language. "No tattoos. This is about my work."

Duncan swore in several languages upon hearing that.

"They do not know about us," he continued, his voice cold and unemotional. "I would like to keep it that way."

"So, NID then," Daniel turned to his captors. "What are you looking for now? The secret to Ascension? Knowledge of the Ancients? I can't help you. I have repeatedly told the government that I have no memory of that period in my life. That knowledge is gone."

"You remembered about Bra'tac and Teal'c son," the NID man, a tall and thin white man with wispy hair and a pointed nose, said, sounding accusingly.

Daniel shook his head. "I don't know why I was allowed to remember that. Everything else is a blank."

"Maybe your memories are repressed or maybe you want to believe that your memory has been erased by the Ancients, to excuse your indifference to our survivability, but we have ways getting the info we want, even shaking repressed memories loose," a second man, short and bald, looking somewhat like a lesser version of Patton Oswalt. "Personally, I think you're just lying, but we'll see."

Daniel felt himself grow cold upon hearing that. "The Ancients don't like their secrets released to the public. What makes you think they won't step in and stop you?" Daniel was feeling slightly panicky at this point.

The Patton Oswalt looking man snorted. "Like they have ever cared about us lesser beings. They stand by and let chaos happen. It's up to us to protect Earth and since you have been less than helpful since your return, we'll help you remember."

"What are they talking about? What are the Ancients?" Duncan asked, once again in Gaelic, thoroughly puzzled.

Daniel looked over at Duncan and sighed. "For what it's worth, I am sorry you got drug into this mess."

With that, the two NID thugs crossed the room and drug Daniel, chair and all, over to a cheap folding table with an assortment of vials and hypodermic needles. Despite his best efforts, he could not fight against the ropes that held him securely to the chair.

One of the men, the tall and slightly balding man who looked rat-like, slipped a rubber band around his upper arm and tied it off, creating a tourniquet, while Patton Oswalt picked up a syringe and filled it with an unknown fluid from a glass vial.

"Sodium Pentothal? Truth serum? Really?" Daniel asked, giving the others a doubtful look.

"Similar, but way better," Patton smirked. "It is amazing how willing a poor, but brilliant, chemistry grad student can be to cook something up when you give them some money. Progress through better chemistry and all that."

"Last chance to tell us about the Ancients," the rat-man asked, sneering at Daniel.

Daniel, feeling like his heart was going to jump out of his chest, shook his head. "I don't know anything. That information is gone! My memory was wiped as punishment for my interference."

"We'll see," the Patton look-alike said as he injected the fluid into a vein at the crook of Daniel's arm, not being overly careful to make sure it is a clean stick.

The tourniquet was untied and immediately a rush of chemical-induced relaxation filled Daniel. He knew that he shouldn't be so relaxed, but he couldn't find it in himself to care.

"Well, this is nice," Daniel said, looking a bit at ease with himself. "You might want to hurry up your questioning because this is going to wear off soon." A distant part of himself was saying, _shut your damn mouth_, but those words weren't vocalized.

The rat-man smiled a nasty smile and came to stand in front of Daniel. "We have plenty more where that came from. Now, what is your name?"

Daniel drunkenly laughed. "Which one? The one I use now? Ones from the past?"

Duncan looking horrified. "Daniel, you need to fight this," he urged, still speaking in Gaelic.

"Oh hey Duncan. I really need to apologize for killing your friend all those years ago," Daniel said, his voice casual, speaking in English. "I don't regret it, but still, she was your friend, even though she was crazy. Oh shit," he suddenly said, sobering up slightly, realizing what he just said.

Rat-man and Patton exchanged a look.

"What secrets of the Ancients have you been keeping from us? Tell me," Rat-man demanded.

Daniel looked at the mortals with boredom. "Um, no." The drugs had worn off quickly. They hadn't given him enough to keep him compliant for long.

Rat-man looked at Patton with annoyance. "Give him another dose, up it if you have to." He didn't expect for the drugs to wear off so quickly.

Patton filled a syringe again, but this time upping the dosage and didn't even bother to worry about the using a tourniquet and injected it straight into Daniel's neck.

"Again, what is your name?" Rat-man asked.

Daniel, feeling no compulsion to lie, told him, "Currently, I am known as Daniel Jackson. It was the name I was given by my parents. I've gone by other names though. The people of Abydos called me Danyar and when I lived in Egypt, long ago, I was called Danil. My friends even called me Hades, once upon a time."

Duncan felt the blood drain from his face.

"Daniel, shut up!" he begged the other Immortal and was pistol-whipped for his troubles.

"I want to know about weapons we can use against the Goa'uld and the Replicators," Patton demanded. "I don't care about his name."

"They left stuff all over the place," Daniel said. "You should try PX6-121. The Ancients left some interesting stuff there. You would have to look under the altar in the main temple. Maybe some weapons. I didn't pay too much attention when I was ascended to specifics on other planets, other than what was going on with Abydos," he explained.

"Planets?" Duncan mouthed silently, wondering if he heard right.

"Yeah, planets," Daniel said, looking over at Duncan. "The SGC sends out teams to explore alien planets. Been doing this for about nine years. That is where Adam has been for the past few days."

"I want addresses," Rat-man demanded.

"I need something to write with," Daniel said, sounding agreeable.

A pad of paper and a felt-tipped pen was produced.

Daniel looked slightly disappointed. "I was really hoping you had a pencil so I could stab you with it. I've done it before."

"Get busy," the man barked, shoving the pen in Daniel's hand and holding the pad for him, careful to not stand too close to his captive.

Daniel started writing, but suddenly shook himself. "No," he said, looking annoyed.

"Give him more," Rat-man ordered Patton.

"I give him too much and it will kill him," the other man said in protest.

Daniel gave a slight snort upon hearing that. Getting killed would actually help his situation and hopefully end the massive headache he was currently experiencing.

Duncan, in the meantime was struggling against his ropes

"Do it," the thin man shouted.

Another dose was administered, via his neck, causing Daniel's eyes to lose their focus and his breathing slowed dramatically.

"What did you do to him?" Rat-man yelled.

Patton look-alike shrugged. "You said to give him more, so I did."

"He isn't breathing!" Rat-man checked his carotid artery, checking for a pulse. "Aw shit, his heart stopped!"

At this, Patton selected a large syringe full of a clear liquid and then jammed it straight into Daniel's chest, piercing his sternum and into his heart, and jammed the plunger down.

"Oh God!" Rat-man and Duncan both said at the same time.

Patton shrugged, unconcerned. "It worked in Pulp Fiction."

Duncan, upon hearing that, just shook his head and prayed that the epinephrine would cover Daniel's death and make it look like he was revived like a normal person. Daniel was dead, for all intents and purposes; Duncan could not feel his Quickening.

A minute passed, then Daniel suddenly revived, his body arching up slightly as he took in a shuddering breath.

"What the hell?" Danil asked, a cold look in his eyes. He was pissed.

* * *

A/N: Well, what did you think? Hit the shiny review button and let me know what think. All constructive criticisms are welcome, flames are not. Thank you though for reading my story. It is appreciated.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Disclaimer: As much as I might wish, I do not own Stargate: SG1, Highlander: the Series, or any recognizable characters from either show. However, any characters that are not from either show are mine and I will use and abuse them as I see fit. Everyone else will be returned eventually, for I am only borrowing for a while, but they might end up a bit scuffed.

A/N: Torture is discussed and described in this chapter.

* * *

"Next time we might not bring you back," Rat-man said, evilly smiling.

Danil looked at his captors with ill-concealed contempt; like he needed them to revive him. "Well, aren't I the lucky one then? So what's next? Branding? Rats? Shrimp-tie? Tickle torture?"

"What is shrimp-tie?" Duncan asked, curious in spite of himself.

"It is a type of Kinbaku bondage that originated in Japan over three hundred years ago. First, a chest tie is constructed and the victim sits cross-legged and the ankles are tied together using a single column tie. Then a rope is looped over the participant's neck and then down to the ankles. The whole thing is gradually tightened so the ankles are slowly brought up to the head," Danil said in a cheery voice.

"How do you know this?" Duncan asked, a little horrified.

"Never been into bondage, have you?" Danil chuckled, knowing he was disturbing the mortals, giving a sly wink to Duncan, hoping that the other man understood that yes, he was being weird and maybe a little scary, but was fully in control of himself.

"I'm sorry I asked."

At this point, Rat-man pistol-whipped Daniel.

"Oh, you like it rough then. Goody. Me too," Danil said, working his jaw slightly, feeling the damage healing inside his mouth, smiling slightly as he spit out some blood.

"How about if we just shoot your friend?" Patton asked, glaring at the archaeologist. This was not how it was supposed to go. Dr. Jackson, while having a reputation as a snarky individual, was not supposed to be this resilient.

Danil shrugged, hampered by the ropes around his arms and across his chest, and laughed. "Go ahead and shoot him, you will eventually. He isn't a good friend anyways. Make sure you dump his body in the woods though so the wild animals will get him."

"You don't care about him? Will you care if we find your friend Adam Pierson and shoot him too?" Rat-man asked.

At this Danil just laughed. "I'd like to see you try it. He'll make you eat your own heart when he is done with you."

"Daniel?" Duncan asked, looking alarmed.

"Get a hold of Jack or Methos, let them know what's happened. Use your Watcher connections if you have too," Daniel said, speaking quickly in Gaelic, knowing time was short for the other man.

"Wha," Duncan began to say, but was cut off when Rat-man shot Duncan in the head.

"Ouch," Danil observed. "Head shots always hurt."

"It'll leave a mark for sure," Rat-man snarked.

Danil snickered. "Not always."

Predictably, Patton and Rat-man dragged the dead body out of the room, dumping him somewhere else in the house.

In the meantime, Daniel took some deep breaths, doing his best to calm his nerves. While he wore the disguise of Danil, he knew it would only help so much. It wouldn't spare him any pain that was to come. It was going to hurt and hurt bad.

When the duo came back, they had grim looks on their faces, preparing themselves what they were willing to do to get the answers about Ascension.

~SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1~

Hours later, Danil found himself covered in sweat, water, and blood. His shirt was torn in several places and even slightly burnt from the use of a cattle prod. His captors were serious about wanting to know more about Ascension.

Waterboarding was pretty horrific. Rat-man and Patton (they had long ago revealed their given first names, but Danil was beyond caring who they actually were) dragged him, minus the chair, but still immobilized by ropes and zip ties, into the bathroom and thrown into the bath tub. He found himself on his back, semi hog-tied, but at least not shrimp-tied.

"This is pretty gross guys. When was the last time you scrubbed the tub?" Danil snarked, channeling his inner Jack. "I'm probably going to get typhoid or cooties from this thing."

Rat-man let out an irritated sigh and placed a towel over Danil's face. He held it and Danil's head in place and proceeded to allow Patton to pour water onto his face, using a hose attachment on the shower head, over the breathing passages. This caused an almost immediate gag reflex and created a drowning sensation.

No matter how much he fought, trying to turn his face away from the water, he couldn't escape. Rat-man had one of his knees sitting on his chest, preventing him from finding any leverage that would allow him to escape. Instead, he was forced in endure the torture, water filling his lungs.

Every so often Danil's tormentors would stop and ask him if he wanted to tell them about Ascension, if he wanted to finish the gate address that would lead them to the weapons of the gate builders.

"No," Danil ground out, coughing up water. He had long given up saying that he didn't remember.

"Fine," Rat-man said and started with the water torture again.

_If I ever get out of this, I owe some massive sacrifices and apologies to everyone I've ever hurt_, Daniel promised himself, feeling regret and shame for what he had done to others over the years. Sure he had been tortured before, but this was lasting a long time, longer than even when he was killed in Novgorod by Ivan the Terrible's giant frying pan. _I'm going to at least give a sizable donation to TESSA Safehouse and Project Innocence_, he told himself. Not that money bought forgiveness, but it was the very least he could do for the two groups he could immediately remember.

Eventually, Danil did give in and died from drowning. When he went still, Rat-man and Patton hauled his dripping form out of the tub and onto the bathroom floor.

Quickly, his Quickening kicked in, healing his abused lungs and he revived, coughing and gagging on water that remained in his lungs, covering his death and miraculous recovery.

Rat-man, tired of being in the tub, tired of being wet, gave an order to Patton to help him drag Daniel back into the main living area and retied him to the chair.

"What's next?" Danil ground out, wondering what was taking the cavalry so long to arrive. He knew that Macleod was back among the living, judging by the Quickening signature he had felt a long time ago. Surely he had been able to get ahold of someone from the base. He had left the immediate area right before the waterboarding had started.

"We know the knowledge is still in you. You told us about a planet and started giving us an address. We want the rest of the address," Patton explained.

"And if I don't, then what?' Danil asked "Thumb screws? Strappado? Making someone listen to The Carpenters over and over?"

"How about knee-capping?" Rat-man asked, right before he shot Daniel in his right knee.

Danil screamed, his body arching up once again in pain despite being securely bound by the ropes to the chair he was sitting on.

The actual patella was shattered, while the tendons and ligaments suffered major trauma. Blood and bone fragments splattered everywhere while the knee itself looked like someone had drove a pick axe through the front and driven a dump truck out the side.

"Goddamnit!" Danil roared, his sense overwhelmed by the pain in his leg. "I don't know any address you moron. Truth serums only make you more willing to say anything, the truth or not. I don't remember anything!" Internally, he was praying that the trauma to his knee was bad enough that his Quickening would take it's time healing the wound.

At this, Rat-man shot Daniel in his other knee, with similar results, though by this time, Daniel could feel himself going into shock. The first bullet hit the artery in his leg, causing him to quickly bleed out.

"I'm going to kill you for this," Danil ground out, feeling his hold on consciousness and life slipping away.

Danil was shot again, this time in his chest, ending his life.

Ding dong, the Immortal was dead. For now.

* * *

A/N: Well, what did you think? Hit the shiny review button and let me know what think. All constructive criticisms are welcome, flames are not. Thank you though for reading my story. It is appreciated.

Also, Project Innocence is an organization that works to exonerate wrongly convicted prisoners here in the United States. TESSA Safehouse is an organization in Colorado Springs that helps provide emergency shelter and services for victims of domestic violence. They booth do wonderful work. While money doesn't buy forgiveness, it does help support organizations that work to better victims' lives and I wanted to incorporate real-world organizations into my fictional story.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Disclaimer: As much as I might wish, I do not own Stargate: SG1, Highlander: the Series, or any recognizable characters from either show. However, any characters that are not from either show are mine and I will use and abuse them as I see fit. Everyone else will be returned eventually, for I am only borrowing for a while, but they might end up a bit scuffed.

* * *

"Fuck," Patton screamed at Rat man. "Why did you have to do that? Now his knowledge is lost!"

"Relax John," Rat-man sneered at his colleague. "At least he can't give that knowledge to anyone else."

"Phil, what do we do now? He's dead, his friend is dead. The SGC is going to be asking questions and looking for Jackson," Patton, nee John, asked.

"Do what he said, dump him and his friend's bodies in the woods and let the local predators' dispose of them," John said, wiping away the spray of Daniel's blood that had decorated his face. "I'll grab his friend and we can throw their bodies down the ravine behind the house. No one will know and we'll be long gone."

The two stepped out of the back bedroom they had been in and into the living room where they had dumped the lifeless body of Duncan MacLeod.

"Um, where did he go?" John asked, sounding stupid.

~SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1~

Where did he go, indeed?

Rat-man and Patton had dumped Duncan's lifeless body in the living room and went back to torturing Daniel.

If they had stuck around, they would have seen the familiar miniature lightning bolts lick across the bullet wound on Duncan's head, healing the mess the mortals had caused. It took some time; bullet wounds to the head and into the brain were complex and catastrophic. The Quickening could heal any wounds, other than a decapitation, but some took longer than others.

Duncan came back to life, his gasping breath covered by Daniel's yelling as he being drug into the bathroom. Luckily, the kidnappers had undone the ropes that had tied in place, leaving him free now to escape and get help. Not once did he consider ditching Daniel and leaving the other Immortal to his fate.

The gods were surely smiling on him as he also discovered one of the men's cellphone sitting on a beaten up kitchen table.

Snatching up the flip phone, he quietly stole out of the house, finding himself situated in a cabin in the woods. Fan-flipping-tastic.

He didn't know where he was exactly. He figured he was still in Colorado, judging by the Aspen Pine trees; he only hoped that he was still in the vicinity of Colorado Springs and that he wasn't in a dead zone for cell coverage.

Duncan got off the road, but stayed close by. He didn't want to get lost in the woods, but being on the open road, left him too exposed for his liking. He headed down, running as fast as he dared. It was quickly getting dark and he didn't want to waste time by injuring himself. Yes, he would heal, but it would take time that he didn't want to waste.

While making his way down the mountain, dodging low branches and stumbling over the occasional rock, Duncan called a phone number long memorized.

It took several ring for a connection was made and an old, familiar voice answered.

"Hello?" Joe asked, not recognizing the number that was displayed on the LED screen of the bar's cordless phone.

"Joe, thank God!" It's me Duncan and I need some help," the Immortal identified himself, feeling slightly relieved.

Joe chuckled. "The great Duncan MacLeod is asking for my help? Will wonders never cease."

"Seriously Joe. I need to get a hold of the Watcher of Daniel Jackson. I know he works with Jackson and he can get in touch with his friends or even Adam, if he is available," Duncan hurriedly said as he continued to run. "Methos works for Daniel and is friends with his friends.

"You want me to have a Watcher call you about another Immortal?" Joe scoffed, his voice sounding tinny coming from the cell phone. "There is no way I can do that and there is no way another Watcher would reveal himself to an Immortal."

Duncan gritted his teeth in frustration. "Jackson knows his Watcher. This isn't about Immortal business but it could be soon. Jackson and I were grabbed and our kidnappers were trying to torture some information out of the man. If they go too far, they could find out about Immortals, causing more problems for all of us. It has nothing to do with us, but the work he does for the Air Force. Help me out Joe, please?"

Joe did some grumbling, but recognizing that potential danger of the secret of Immortals getting out, didn't protest his involvement. Instead, he made his way through the bar and into his back office.

He booted up his computer and opened a program that had the phone numbers of Watchers located in North America. Cross-referencing the Immortal in question, brought up the name of his Watcher.

"James Abbott, 719-867-5309," Joe rattled off. "I expect a full explanation when you get back Mac," Joe started to say but his voice was cut off by Duncan hitting the end button.

Duncan quickly dialed the number, least he forget it, praying that the Watcher would pick up.

"Hello," came a cautious voice.

"James Abbott?" Duncan asked, seeking confirmation that he was talking to the right person.

"Look, if you are selling something, I don't want it and I don't care about politics," came Abbott's response.

"This is Duncan MacLeod. I got your name and number from Joe Dawson. I know you are the Watcher to Daniel Jackson, and probably Adam Pierson too. I need you to get a hold of General O'Neill. Jackson has been kidnapped and is probably being tortured by people he claimed were members of the NID. They are wanting information about Ascension, whatever that is. They are going to find out about Immortals though."

"Oh God," Abbott groaned. "I just left the Mountain. It will be easier if I just go back and talk to O'Neill myself. A phone call through the SGC's system could be overheard by the wrong people. Can I reach you again at this number?" Abbott said as he looked for a spot he could turn around legally and not cause an accident.

"Yeah, the battery seems to be holding up. Please hurry," Duncan urged the Watcher, grateful that the man was not balking at the idea of a Watcher and an immortal knowing each other.

Duncan hung up to preserve the battery life and continued to run down the mountain. Eventually he came upon a log cabin, whose mailbox, a battered black breadbox was sitting on a post beside the home's driveway. Taking a chance, Duncan pried open the box, hoping to find a piece of mail with an address on the envelope.

Luck was in his favor apparently. A mailer was in the mailbox, with the address of 51917 West Arapaho Drive Leadville, Colorado 80461. He felt almost relieved to know that he was still in Colorado.

He moved off the road again, careful to stay out of sight.

Within half an hour, the stolen cell phone rang again.

"This is General O'Neill. Who am I speaking too?" Jack barked into the phone, not willing to waste the energy with stupid chit-chat.

"This is Duncan MacLeod. We met the other night or a couple nights ago. I don't even know what day this is," Duncan identified himself.

"Prove it," came the gruff reply.

"The night Daniel and I came over to your house, your friend Murray told me my accent was terrible."

"What is going on MacLeod," Jack asked, careful with his words. He was on a government phone after all and didn't want the secret of the existence of Immortals to get out because of an errant comment.

Duncan, also aware that others could be listening in on the phone call, chose his words carefully. "We were over at Adam's house. Daniel's car wouldn't start. We popped the hood and found it was disabled. Next thing I know it that we were shot with some sort of dart. After that, we woke up and found ourselves tied up in a home by these people who wanted to know if Daniel had any information about Ascension. I managed to get away, but Daniel is still there. I am pretty sure he is being tortured. Eventually, they are going to kill him."

"Do you know who these people are?" Jack asked, growing more and more pissed by the second. Couldn't the Spacemonkey stay out of trouble for just a few days?

Duncan sighed. "They aren't anyone I know, but they may be those NID people you spoke about. Nothing stood out about them, no identifying tattoos," he said, implying that they weren't Watchers.

"Where are you in relation to Daniel? Sam is currently tracing your call," Jack asked, frustrated at what was happening.

"I'm outside of a log cabin probably about two miles down from where they are holding Daniel," Duncan said, checking all around him, hoping that there was no one at the near-by home that would see him, hoping that no one from where he escaped noticed that he wasn't dead and come looking for him. "I'm somewhere in Leadville, Colorado."

"I swear I am chipping Daniel the next time I see him," Jack grumbled, looking over at Sam who nodded in agreement, while Teal'c raised an eyebrow. Abbott snorted.

"Like that'll keep him out of trouble," Methos said. He had just gotten back planet-side to find out that Daniel had gotten into quite the pickle once again.

"I got him," Sam announced, not even bothering to look up from her computer, busy tracing Macleod's call. "Unfortunately, we don't have Prometheus available to help us out. The ship is down for routine maintenance and a few software upgrades. It will take us a couple of hours to get to you. Stay out of sight and have the phone on so we can find you."

"Fine, please hurry. I'm going to go back and see what is going on," Duncan announced.

"Don't get caught," Jack needlessly reminded the other Immortal.

"I won't. Hurry," Duncan said, his voice short and clipped and then hung up.

Jack looked over at Methos who shrugged. "MacLeod has skills as a tracker, he'll be fine. If mountain men were metrosexuals, Duncan MacLeod would be their poster boy."

Jack nodded, feeling his headache growing. "Fine. Get changed everyone. Civilian clothes, Adam, if you could take a shower first, you smell like a barn. Get what gear you need from the armory and meet upstairs in ten minutes. Move out," he ordered, his command voice clear and in control.

The five of them got their selves together in record time. Methos, thankfully got himself cleaned up. The town they had visited had been very rural and everything smelled like a pig farm.

Weapons were obtained for those that needed them (i.e. could not run home and get their own or didn't have something in their car), mostly just handguns, radios, and tac-vests. Teal'c did manage to procure a Remington V3 Tactical Shotgun for himself.

The five members of the SGC and friends of Daniel all piled into Jack's truck, with Teal'c sitting in the front passenger seat, while Sam was sandwiched into the back with Abbott and Methos.

It took them over two hours to get to Leadville from Colorado Springs, and then another half hour to find out where Duncan was hiding out. The whole time, Jack was busy cursing the Prometheus for not being available when he needed it and trying to not yell at all the other people that had the nerve to be on the road at the same him as him.

He also spent the time imagining what was happening to Daniel. All of the possible ways to torture and interrogate his friend ran through his mind.

What really chilled Jack was wondering who he would find when they found his friend. Would it be Daniel or his nastier self, Danil? Daniel would need a friend to help him recover emotionally from his ordeal. Danil had the potential and the ability to go on a tear like few others.

~SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1~

Daniel, having been shot and killed, sat there in his chair like the dead lump of flesh he was while his tormentors were busy looking for the body of Duncan MacLeod.

"You said he was dead," Patton yelled, coming back into the house and stomping his way through the house to the back bedroom.

"He was!" Rat-man said snidely. "He was shot in the head and had no pulse."

"Obviously he wasn't since his body is missing," Patton sneered, "unless of course he is a zombie or immortal."

"You saw me blow his brains out. People don't survive that," Rat-man retorted.

As they came back into the bedroom, they found Daniel still dead, tied to the chair. While standing there, trying to decide what to do next, Daniel had the unfortunate sense of timing and revived in front of the NID agents.

The agents, to their credit, didn't scream in fright, but they did jump in surprise.

"Oh my god! That hurt," Daniel groaned, taking in his surroundings, seeing that he was still tied to the chair and the mortals were staring at him with their mouths open.

"How is this possible? Did the Ancients heal you?" Patton asked, amazed at seeing Daniel Jackson alive, seeing that the damage done to his knees and chest were gone. The only proof that something bad had happened was the blood and the holes in his clothing. The skin was clear and unblemished.

Daniel decided that playing dumb would be the wisest move. "I don't know what happened," he said, his eyes wide and confused.

"Liar," Rat-man hissed. "What are you?"

Danil looked at the mortal with narrowed eyes, contempt lacing his words. "Something you're not."

Rat-man turned to Patton. "Give him more of your truth serum. Not as much as you did the last time, but more than the second time.

A needle was jammed into Daniel's neck and the familiar rush flowed through him, relaxing his body and mind, but not before a fleeting thought of: _this is going to be bad_, ran through his head.

"Every couple of minutes, give him a boost of the drug or set up an IV to keep him talking," Rat-man said.

"What are you?" Rat-man asked again.

"I'm an Immortal," Daniel said easily, more than happy to tell his captors his secrets.

"How is this possible? Is it because you were ascended?" Patton asked.

Daniel laughed. "No. I became Immortal long before the SGC had even heard of the Ancients and Ascended beings, well, sort of. It's complicated. Dear God, is it ever complicated. I can't even begin to explain how complicated my life is. Word of advice, don't get messed up in time travel. It makes things wibbly wobbly and complicated."

"If he says complicated one more time, I'm going to hit him," Rat-man said, quietly.

"What? Complicated?" Daniel asked, earning him a punch in the face, causing him to laugh and spit some blood out on to the floor.

"Child's play," Daniel said, derisively.

"How did this happen? Was it an alien artifact?"

Daniel rolled his eyes. "No. I was born, I grew up, and eventually I experienced my first death that wasn't interrupted by an alien or alien artifact. I was killed in the shadows of the Great Pyramids and my body was thrown into a pit with the others. I woke up among the dead and didn't really know what had happened until I met my first teacher. Ever since then, it has been an interesting ride, to say the least."

"How can we make more? Can we find more? Rat-man asked, envisioning an army of Immortals to fight their foes, the NID's own personal Kull warriors.

The Immortal laughed at that. "No, you cannot make more. Nobody knows where Immortals come from. We are all foundlings, we don't know why we are here or if there is a point to all of this," he explained, sounding exasperated.

"With the right alien tech, we could clone them," Patton said thoughtfully as he gave Daniel another dose of the serum, careful to not overdose the man, but if he was Immortal, it wouldn't really matter in the end.

"So, how many other Immortals are out there?" Rat-man asked.

Daniel shrugged, or at least attempted to. The ropes and zip ties still held him in place. "Don't know. I've never taken a census. I run into a few every so often. Sometimes it is friendly, sometimes less than friendly. Take MacLeod for example. He hasn't been my biggest fan in a couple hundred years, but we haven't killed each other yet. Though if he finds out I killed Cassandra, he'll probably want my head for that. Bitch deserved it though. We should have killed her thousands of years ago, but we didn't."

"Who is _we_?" Patton asked.

"The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. I was friends with War, Famine, Pestilence, and Death. I was known back then as Hades. We became somewhat famous in our exploits, ravaging three continents," Daniel said, being very chatty. "Okay, I wasn't really friends with Famine. Caspian was a cannibal. Do you have any idea how many times I threw up watching him eat. It didn't matter if it was human or not, I couldn't watch him eat. You can't be friends with that. The best I could do was not kill him and not let him near any of the people that were under my protection."

"Oh shit," Rat-man exclaimed, suddenly realizing that the man they had killed, but had disappeared, was an Immortal. "MacLeod."

At that, Daniel started laughing. "Yeah, oh shit is right. Took you long enough to pick up on that little bit. He's probably going to kill you. That is, if I don't first."

Rat-man and Patton had weary looks on their faces.

"You won't kill us. Your reputation as a peace-loving tree-hugger is well know," Patton declared.

Daniel snorted in amusement.

"The best peace-makers are the ones who know war intimately and I know all about the horrors seen on the battlefield. I fought with Alexander, I fought in the French and Indian War and the Civil War. I fought in World War II. Just because I know about how bad it is, that doesn't mean I didn't learn anything and I've always been an excellent student," Danil finished, coldly, the drugs having finally worn off.

He also felt the return of MacLeod.

* * *

A/N: Well, what did you think? Hit the shiny review button and let me know what think. All constructive criticisms are welcome, flames are not. Thank you though for reading my story. It is appreciated

For your information, 719 is the local area code for Colorado Springs and 867-5309 is from the song "Jenny" by Tommy Tutone.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Disclaimer: As much as I might wish, I do not own Stargate: SG1, Highlander: the Series, or any recognizable characters from either show. However, any characters that are not from either show are mine and I will use and abuse them as I see fit. Everyone else will be returned eventually, for I am only borrowing for a while, but they might end up a bit scuffed.

* * *

Daniel sat there, not able to do much else, waiting for someone to, hopefully soon, come and cut him out of the bindings that held him in place, while his captors conferred between each other, their voices hushed. Eventually, one of them left the room speaking on his cellphone.

Duncan, meanwhile, true to his word, returned to the cabin. He spotted the Jeep Wrangler in the gravel driveway that had been present when he first took off, which gave him some ideas for a distraction. He would need a pretty decent distraction if he had any hope of saving Daniel from his captors and hopefully, Daniel's friends would have something to help create said distraction.

He checked the windows in the back of the building, careful to keep any noise to a minimum, looking for Daniel and how he was fairing.

Duncan peered through a dirty and half cracked window and spotted the older immortal, still tied to the chair, but completely disheveled, bloody, and wet. His wet hair was plastered to his head. His glasses were missing, there were a few burnt holes in his shirt, and his pants were torn at the knees and bloody. Duncan could easily imagine what they had done to him.

The phone began to vibrate, indicating a call was trying to come through.

"Hello," he whispered, praying that it wasn't someone wanting to get ahold of the person he stole the phone from.

"MacLeod," a relieved Methos replied. "Where are you?"

"Up at the house where Daniel still being held," Duncan replied, making sure to keep his voice down and he slowly backed away from the house.

"Is Daniel okay?" came a voice some distance from the phone that Methos held in his hand.

Duncan sighed. "He's alive, but he looks like a mess. I don't know for sure what happened, but it can't be good. The mortals probably saw something.

"Where are you?"

"We are coming up Arapaho right now," Methos replied.

"Good, I'll start down the road and meet you along the way, but hurry," the younger Immortal replied and hung up the phone.

Duncan moved through the near-by trees, taking himself further away from Daniel. When he felt he had traveled far enough, he then left the cover of the trees and moved out closer to the road. It was dark now, probably closer to eight or nine o'clock, so standing in the middle of the road made little sense, but he didn't want to remain do deep undercover that he and Daniel's friends missed each other.

It took about half an hour before Duncan finally spotted a pair of headlights coming up the road that belonged to a truck that looked to be full of people. He also noted a powerful and familiar Quickening signature. _Methos_, he mentally breathed a sigh of relief.

It pulled to a stop, to the side of the road, and Duncan took a couple steps closer, grateful that the others had finally arrived.

"What kind of mess did Daniel get himself into this time?" Jack called out as he climbed out of the truck, tired from all of the driving.

"Nothing good," Duncan declared.

"He is tied up to a chair in the back, with two mortals, who are somehow tied to the work you do under Cheyenne Mountain. The mortals wanted information about the Ancients and when Daniel was among the Ascended. Aliens were also mentioned," Macleod told them, his voice dry. "Daniel is very chatty when given whatever version of amobarbital is being used these day."

"Ah!" Jack waved his hands on either side of his face. "I'm going to need you to sign some forms when we get back to town."

"I wouldn't say anything, plus no one would ever believe me," Duncan replied.

"How did you get away," Sam, Duncan presumed, asked, staring at him with an intense glare.

Duncan sighed. "They shot me in the head and then dumped my dead body in the front room while they decided to water board Daniel. I came to, found a phone, and eventually called Daniel's Watcher.

"That would be me," another man, standing slightly behind Teal'c, keeping an eye out for anyone coming up behind their car.

Jack sighed deeply, worried about his friend and whether or not they would find their Daniel in the house or if they would find his meaner, nastier side, Danil.

"Okay, here's my plan so far: we hike it back up to this cabin, create a distraction, storm in and grab Daniel," Jack said, running a hand tiredly through his grey hair. "MacLeod, since you know where it is, you are on lead. Teal'c and Abbott, you are both bringing up the rear. Move out."

Everyone, included MacLeod, followed orders and got moving. They moved through the trees, not exactly silent, but enough to show that each and every member was a skilled professional. There was no talking among any of them, though Jack, Teal'c, Sam, Abbott, and even Methos silently communicated through military sign language, effectively communicating their needs and intents. While MacLeod was in the lead and couldn't really observe the others all that much, he was impressed by their professionalism and their drive to get to their friend.

Before too long, they were back at the cabin where Daniel was being held.

"Is he still there?" Jack whispered to the two Immortals, hoping they were close enough to feel each other's Quickening.

Methos nodded. "He's there. What now? We go in guns blazing?"

Jack gave the older Immortal a sarcastic smile. "No. MacLeod and I will circle around to the back, while you and Abbott come around from the other way. We'll see how Daniel is doing and check to see where the others are located. Sam, you figure out how to rig some sort of distraction, preferably loud and attention getting, while Teal'c keeps an eye out for anyone coming up the road," he said, showing one of the many reasons he made general. "Move out."

The two pairs moved around to the back where Daniel was being held. They moved slow and careful to not make too much noise, as to alert Daniel's captors to their presence. They avoided the windows to the best of their abilities, avoiding rustling the leaves or stepping on twigs and branches.

Once at the back of the cabin, the four men crouched underneath a window, though Jack took a risk and quickly peered into the back bedroom.

"Son of a bitch," Jack swore. "I thought you said there was only two men with Daniel," he directed his glare at Macleod. "There's five now!"

Macleod, looking shocked, shook his head. "There were only two when I left. I didn't see anyone else."

"Sir, they might have access to transporters," Abbott replied, his voice low.

"Shit," growled Jack, then he spoke into his radio, careful to keep his voice low. "Carter, how are you doing with a distraction? We need a good one, since there are now five people, plus Daniel, in the house."

"It might take a few minutes, but I have a good idea," Sam replied. "Can you send someone back to help me out?"

"Abbott go," Jack ordered.

Abbott, turned and made for the front as quickly as possible.

"Abbott is coming to you. How long do you think until you are going to do whatever it is you do?" Jack asked, depressing the talk button on his radio.

"Give me about ten minutes and you'll hear it," Sam replied, sounding confident in her destructive abilities.

"Good," Jack replied. "We'll be ready to move then."

"What's your plan?" Methos asked, his eyes dark and cold.

"Hopefully, whatever Sam has planned with get at least a couple of them out of the room. One of us goes through the window, cuts Daniel loose, and we deal with the kidnappers," Jack stated calmly.

"I won't fit easily," MacLeod stated, looking at the window.

"I know," Jack said easily. "That is why Adam is going. He's smaller than the both of us and can use you to boost him through."

"I'm not a step stool O'Neill," Duncan said crossly.

"Yeah, well, I'm getting too old for this shit and you both can use your perpetual youth for good for once," Jack then said, also cross.

"Daniel is going to owe us all," Methos shared. "He still owes me for South Dakota."

"He made up for it when you guys killed Kali," Jack observed.

Methos gave the mortal a fuck off and die look. "We agreed that we would never talk about that bitch again."

"Do I want to know what you are talking about?" Duncan asked.

Jack snorted. "You don't get to hear that one until you sign a NDA and make sure we tell you about Priapus' world and the statue."

"Don't you dare," Methos snapped. "Remember, I know how to kill you at least different ways without breaking a sweat."

"Yeah well, you won't because you love me too much and I'm the guy who signs off on your leave," Jack said, waving away Methos' feigned ire. "Damnit Carter, where is your distraction?"

While the men remained crouched underneath the window, Sam, with the help of Abbott were busy.

Under Sam's direction, they popped open the car's door, then popped open the hood. They then gathered up several armfuls of dried, yellowing pine needles and placed them in a pile in the engine compartment. They also dumped several armfuls of needles into the interior. Sam then dumped some gasoline on the needles that she got from a gas can she found in the trunk of the car. Next she lit a road flare, which beat lighting pinecones on fire, into the engine compartment. Once Sam tossed the flare, Abbott eased the hood down, careful to not slam it, thus alerting Daniel's captors or risk blowing out the fire.

Once that was completed, they both retreated (ran like hell) a good distance from the vehicle, just in case something blew. Sam didn't think it would blow up like in the movies, but she didn't want to take a chance. She just hoped it would be a big enough

Whump!

The car turned into a fireball under five minutes. It went from, _oh how peculiar, is that smoke coming out from the engine compartment_ to _holy Jesus, shit is on fire_ in less time it takes to boil water. The hood blew up, hard enough that it slammed into the windshield, shattering the glass. Next, with the glass blown out, the fire was able to latch on to the interior and it soon was swallowed up in the burning conflagration. The tires soon after blew, sounding like gunshots. Pieces of melted black synthetic rubber went everywhere, at least five yards out.

It burned hot enough that Sam, Abbott, and Teal'c easily felt the flames from at least fifty feet back. Any needles on the dirt ground caught fire. The air smelled of burning rubber, gasoline, and plastics. Black smoke rolled off the engulfed vehicle.

The car didn't explode, unlike how Hollywood depicts car fires, but the initial whump from the pine needles and road flare and the tires blowing out, was enough to get the attention of the people inside the building.

Soon after the vehicle's hood slammed open, at least three men ran out of the house, leaving two still inside but in the front room.

While the mortals were busy watching their car go up in flames, Methos, while standing on Duncan's back, who was down on all fours to give Methos a good base to climb from, pushed the old aluminum window open and wormed his way inside.

He quickly rushed over to Daniel and began to cut away the ropes and zip ties that held him in place.

"Took you long enough," Daniel groused, rubbing his arms vigorously to get some feeling back into them, as Methos finished cutting away the bindings around his legs.

Methos looked at his friend with a sour look. "You start bitching and I might just leave you here."

"You won't," Daniel said with confidence as he tried to stand up, teetering slightly.

"Oh, I wouldn't?"

"If you left me here, then you would have to take over my job and I have a shit-ton of paperwork I need to get done by next week and a decision needs to be made about personnel," Daniel said, grimacing at the aches and pains he was feeling. He had been stuck in the same position for a long time, and immortal or not, he did get muscle cramps like everyone else. Luckily, they went away a lot faster than with regular people.

Moving swiftly, he pulled Methos' weapon, a Beretta M9, from his waistband and stalked over to the bedroom's door. He yanked the flimsy door open hard enough to pull off one of the hinges.

Daniel, not Danil, was pissed. All of the rage and terror that people in the NID knew about Immortals flowed through every fiber of his being. He didn't need Danil to channel the fury that he felt. They had managed to get him to reveal the existence of his kind and wanted to exploit it for their own personal goals and gains. _Like hell they would_. _I won't be the reason Immortals are outted_, he thought to himself.

His face was contorted into a mask of fire-breathing anger, his eyes cold, but it was completely under control. It was anger, not a blind rage, which filled his vision.

Smears of blood on his skin made him look like an enraged demon. It didn't matter to him that his clothes were shredded and he was sopping from his time being water boarded. All that mattered was him making sure that the existence of Immortals remained a secret.

The gun was out, fully extended from eye level. One hand was wrapped around the pistol grip and one finger was poised to pull the trigger, while the other hand cupped the front and butt, giving him support and steadiness.

He moved confidently, his footsteps were quick and sure. His moves were of someone long practiced in combat situations.

The two men still in the house, Rat-man and Patton, turned around in surprise, giving Daniel a clear and easy shot. A small hole appeared on their foreheads and their skulls exploded out the back, arterial blood spraying the walls of the living room. They died instantly, swiftly collapsing in boneless heaps on to the floor, blood pooling under their mangled heads.

Daniel calmly stepped over the bodies and strode out on to the porch, his gun at the ready.

The three new NID guys were staring at the SUV that was blazing up, too preoccupied with what they were seeing to think about any possible danger that could be coming up behind them.

Daniel, seizing on their distraction, calmly executed all three men, shooting them in the back of their heads, watching as their bodies also collapsed after having their brains blown out.

Duncan and Jack came running up from behind the house, seeing Daniel shoot the men in cold-blood.

Methos followed in Daniel's wake, calmly, coolly appraising his friend and his actions.

Sam, Teal'c, and Abbott stepped out of the woods near-by, shock written all over their faces. Yes, they had seen their friend kill other in pitched battles, they had even seen him behead another Immortal, but this was different. They had just watched their friend coldly execute three people.

The look on Daniel's face was startling. It was full of anger, but there was a calmness about him. He wasn't frothing at the mouth, driven insane through torture. It wasn't even the crazed look he had had back in South Dakota. He knew exactly what he was doing and had zero regrets.

Zero fucks were given at this point in his lengthy life.

"Um, Daniel? Are you with us?" Jack asked hesitantly, even as Duncan shoved him behind his frame, protecting the mortal in case Daniel wasn't fully Daniel.

Daniel smiled, recognizing how Duncan willingly placed himself between Jack and himself, protecting his friend. "Yeah, I'm me. Danil is locked up in his cage where he belongs," he said, relaxing for the first time since he had been grabbed from Methos' driveway.

Jack rolled his eyes and shoved Macleod out from in front of him. "Do you want to explain yourself? Why did you feel it was necessary terminate these guys with extreme prejudice? And when did you learn to shoot that accurate?"

"That's rude. I've always been a good shot. I might not be able to hit a target from a thousand meters out like some, but I can make a clean shot when the target is less than fifty feet away," Daniel said, hurt in his voice. "Not to mention all of the drills you made me endure when I first joined the Stargate program. Those helped."

Sam and Abbott stood there, their heads slightly cocked, looking at their friend like he had lost his mind.

"They used some sort of truth serum on me and got me talking after I revived in front of them. I told them all about the existence of Immortals. I will not be the reason Immortals are outted to the military or the public. They were rogue NID agents who were extremely interested in weaponizing Immortals, experimenting on us, trying to make us weapons to serve their messed up goals and objectives," Daniel said, anger in his voice. "I won't be the reason my race is hunted down and experimented on."

Jack thought that one over for a few seconds, then shrugged. "Okay. Makes sense to me. What do we do with their bodies? Put them in the house and torch the house?"

Daniel sighed and quickly crossed the distance between himself and his former captors. He crouched down and started going through their pockets, looking for identifications or cell phones. "Adam, can you please check the two in the house?" he called to his friend then looked up at Jack, along with Sam and Teal'c who came to stand by their former team-leader. "If we burn the house, it could spread to the woods and I don't want to be the one who burned down central Colorado. There is supposedly a ravine behind the house somewhere, Dumb and Dumber in the house were planning on dumping Duncan's body there. We can dump them and let any predators deal with them. Then wipe the house down, see if they had any of our belongings, and get out of here as quickly as possible," he explained.

"You are being very calm about this DanielJackson? Are you sure you are in a proper mindset, unlike what occurred on our trip to South Dakota?" Teal'c asked, looking at his friend with a careful, appraising gaze. He too was worried about his friend's mindset.

Daniel gave his friend a tired smile. He understood why his friends were being cautious. "I'm good Teal'c. This sucked, but I can deal with it. With time and with a lot of alcohol, I'll be able to put this behind me."

Teal'c simply nodded, acknowledging his friend's words.

Jack looked around at everyone and sighed. "Let's get busy people. We have thirty minutes to clean this up and then we are on the road. Move it," he barked in his best command voice.

* * *

A/N: Well, what did you think? Hit the shiny review button and let me know what think. All constructive criticisms are welcome, flames are not. Thank you though for reading my story. It is appreciated.

I have never set a car on fire in my life. I looked it up and borrowed heavily from an article written by Andrew Collins and watched a few car fires on YouTube because I have no idea what it is really like in real life. My search engine history makes me look like a homicidal arsonist who is into torture.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8 (Epilogue)

Disclaimer: As much as I might wish, I do not own Stargate: SG1, Highlander: the Series, or any recognizable characters from either show. However, any characters that are not from either show are mine and I will use and abuse them as I see fit. Everyone else will be returned eventually, for I am only borrowing for a while, but they might end up a bit scuffed.

* * *

They made quick work of cleaning up the crime scene. Jack, Abbott, and Teal'c wiped down any possible surface that Daniel, Duncan, and Methos might have touched. Sam was busy with gathering up any paperwork, identifications, and phones that were in the cabin, while the Immortals gathered the bodies of the dead NID agents and took them out back and tossed them down the ravine.

Soon enough they were ready to get out of there. They traipsed back through the woods to Jack's truck, careful to not make too much noise, least the alert a hiker or a resident of the mountain to their presence. It would not do to have someone remember a group of people running through the woods and then discover five dead bodies nearby.

When they reached the truck, Daniel looked at it and then at everyone in the group, mentally counting the number of seats and comparing it to the number of the group. "So, who is riding in the bed?" he asked, giving Methos a side-look.

Methos snorted. "Why should I put myself out any further than I already have? I helped carry dead bodies when I should be in my office, filling an after action report. You ride in the back!"

At this, Daniel had an injured look on his face. "But I've been tortured all day today. Haven't I suffered enough?"

Duncan rolled his eyes at the two. "Might I remind you that I was dragged into your insane world of secret government projects and rogue agents, not to mention getting shot in the head. I am not riding back there either."

"Look here Three Stooges, Sam rides up front between Teal'c and myself. You three and Abbott get the back seats," Jack said, feeling irritable.

As a result, the truck was overly crowded, with four grown men shoved into the extended cab, while poor Sam was squashed between Jack and Teal'c. It all made for the longest hour and a half car ride where no one was even close to being comfortable.

They made it back to Jack's home, with a quick stop off at Daniel's house and Methos' home where both Daniel and Duncan could grab a quick shower and a change of clothes. They both looked like hell. Daniel was also able to pick up his car and keys, after Sam had reconnected the fuses for him. He then drove himself and Abbott over to Jack's home.

Over at Jack's, after Jack had called in an order for pizza, even though it was a late hour, and requested a copy of a NDA be emailed to him so he could get Duncan to officially agree to keep quiet about what he had learned, Jack regaled the Highlander with the history of the Stargate Program.

"Amazing," is all Duncan could say, shocked beyond belief what the SGC were able to accomplish and all they had sacrificed to save the planet and so many others throughout the galaxy.

"So, now you know why I didn't take that teaching position at Mountain State," Methos said, sitting back on Jack's couch with a beer in his hand.

"Can't blame you. It sounds like an incredible journey. I wouldn't want to do it though," Duncan laughed. "I like my mundane life too much."

"You? Mundane?" Methos snorted. "Duncan MacLeod of the Clan MacLeod is anything but mundane."

"By comparison to you guys, I am and that is okay," Duncan declared, much to Daniel's relief. As much as he had grown to respect Duncan, he didn't want him working in the SGC. There were enough Immortals on the base as it was.

"If you see anything in the academic world that screams Goa'uld, we would appreciate you letting us know. From what Adam," Daniel was careful to use Methos' current name since Abbott didn't know who he really was, "has said, you have a keen eye and are quick to spot something unusual. Most of us don't have the time to carefully inspect museums or universities for alien artifacts and could use help in that area."

Jack let out a half laugh. "The few times you've done just that, it went tits up."

Daniel groaned, remembering exactly what Jack was talking about. "I know. But maybe someone else can do that, for a finder's fee of course. Government contract work can pay pretty well. We would just have to teach you Gou'ald and we are starting up a new crash course next week."

"That's not a bad idea Danny-boy. We need someone Earth-based who isn't readily recognizable to the NID. And it would be a flexible position, that would allow you to work at will and allow you to maintain your work in Seacouver," Jack said, liking Daniel's idea.

Duncan looked interested in the idea, but demurred and said he would need a few days to think about it.

The six members of the SGC, plus Duncan MacLeod, continued to relax and decompress from all they had experienced. Plenty of beer was drank by Jack, Methos, Daniel, and Duncan. Pizza was happily consumed. Eventually, Abbott begged off, saying he had to get home to his wife.

Once the Watcher was gone, the others felt freer to discuss what had happened to Duncan and Daniel. They discussed what had taken place, how much Daniel had said to the NID agents, how bad he felt for getting Duncan involved in this latest adventure.

"So, do you want to explain to everyone how you know about shrimp-tie and bondage," Duncan asked, leaning back into the sofa, knowing how the others, especially Jack and Methos, would love to hear about that.

"Oh gods," Daniel groaned, burying his face into his hands. "You would have to bring that up, wouldn't you?"

"Bondage? Danny, you want to tell the class about that one?" Jack asked, perking up, smirking at his friend.

"I read about shrimp-tie once while researching a paper on war crimes in college. It was disturbing, to say the least. As for the bondage, I'll never tell," Daniel said, smirking right back.

"Unless we find the drug that was used on you to get you talking about your life," Sam observed.

Daniel snorted. "You heard me confess to every shitty thing I've done when we were on PX6-121. Isn't that enough?"

Sam just gave her friend a smirk that seemed to scream, _we shall see_.

"You confessed your sins?" Duncan asked. "And where is PX6-121?"

"Yep. All of my faults and sins I was forced to admit to by a group of human aliens, otherwise I would have been stuck inside a force field for all of eternity. As for where it is, you'd have to ask Sam for the actual distance from Earth. Just know that it is in the Milky Way Galaxy."

"So, you guys really do travel to alien planets?" Duncan asked, his brow furrowed. "Even after all you said, it is mind blowing to think you go to other planets on a regular basis."

"Yep," Jack said, looking smug. "Been doing it for a while now. It makes life interesting, to say the least."

"Where do you think I was when Daniel came by to get my mail?" Methos asked, also looking smug. "I was on another planet, making nice with the locals, exploring their heavily agrarian society. Be glad that I took a shower before we came to find you. I smelled like a pig pen."

Duncan looked amazed that humanity had moved beyond the stars and was exploring alien worlds. He remembered when Neil Armstrong had first walked on the moon and that was amazing back then. What the members of the SGC did on a daily basis over-shadowed that feat by a factor of at least a thousand.

"Have you found out the reason why we exist? Immortals, I mean," Duncan asked. "Is there a planet full of Immortals?"

Daniel laughed. "That sounds like a bad sci-fi movie. No, as far as we know, Immortals are not aliens. I don't know why we exist or fight each other, I wish I did, but I don't."

"And you died and ascended? How did that happen?"

Daniel nodded. "I was poisoned by a lethal dose of radiation. As I was dying, a being called Oma Desala offered me Ascension, to allow me to shed my physical body and become a being of pure energy. I died, Ascended, and joined the other Ascended out in the great wide openness."

"And how did that work out Danny-boy?" Jack asked, smirking at his friend.

"Apparently not too well. I got kicked out for breaking the rules of the Ascended. My team found me on an alien planet with no memory of what happened, but fully solid and still an Immortal. Eventually, I got most of my memory back, but not of my time while Ascended. The knowledge of that year is what those assholes wanted. I had a few memories leak back into my conscious mind, but nothing else, and the rogue NID people didn't believe me when I said I didn't remember any more that the time Teal'c teacher, Master Bra'tac, and Teal'c son were held in a slave labor camp. I knew certain members of the military didn't fully believe me when I told them I didn't know anything, but I never thought they would do this," Daniel explained, looking apologetic. "I am so sorry Duncan that you got pulled into this."

Duncan laughed slightly, "I am pretty sure I've drug others into my crazy life, no comments from the peanut gallery, thank you," he said, not bothering to look at Methos as he said that. "Weird things happen to me all the time it seems."

"Still, I am sorry," Daniel said, looking contrite and feeling a bit guilty.

"We made it out alive and the secret of Immortality is still a secret, so I can't get mad. This wasn't your fault," Duncan said, looking squarely at Daniel, hoping that his expression and words let Daniel know that he was sincere.

"Old faces from your past appeared and secrets were revealed, but in the end, you endured. Some times that is all one can hope for," Teal'c said, his solemn, but there was warmth to his words.

"Indeed," the other three, original members of SG-1 chorused.

The end.

* * *

A/N: Well, what did you think? Hit the shiny review button and let me know what think. All constructive criticisms are welcome, flames are not. Thank you though for reading my story. It is appreciated.

This was a lot of fun to write and I want to thank everyone who read my story, and especially those who left a review (WhiteElfElder, starjems88, Procrastination Is My Game, and frostfalcon – thanks for your support and encouragement). It means a lot. I want to especially thank Lorilei, my longtime co-conspirator. Some of the funnier ideas have sprung from her mind and she is a constant source of humor and telling me that, no, I might have gone too far and I need help. Thank you everyone.


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